Body believed to be missing Jay Slater’s is airlifted by chopper out of ‘inaccessible’ area where he ‘fell to his death’
A BODY found in the hunt for missing Brit Jay Slater was recovered using a helicopter.
Apprentice bricklayer Jay vanished on the morning of June 17 after going to a rave the night before with friends – sparking a huge effort to find the Lancashire teen.
Spanish cops axed the official search less than two weeks in – but today announced a body has been found in the area Jay was last known to be, Masca.
A chopper – believed to belong to a regional government emergency and rescue group – was used to recover the body.
Officials coordinated with Civil Guard mountain rescue experts.
It’s thought specialists on the ground winched the body up to the waiting chopper overhead after securing it.
A spokesman for the Civil Guard confirmed a body was found on Monday “after 29 constant days of searching”.
He said: “The discovery has been possible thanks to the tireless and discreet search carried out by the Civil Guard over these 29 days.
“Everything is pointing to the body being that of the young British man who disappeared on June 17, pending full identification.
“Initial inquiries are pointing to him having suffered an accident/fall in the area where he was found.”
It is understood the body was found close to where his mobile phone last pinged – with Jay’s belongings and clothes.
Spanish cops have refused to reveal the exact location of where the body was found.
Jay’s distraught family have been updated and a formal investigation by police is set to follow.
British overseas missing persons charity LBT Global said: “LBT Global is saddened to announce that a body found in Tenerife does look to be that of Jay Slater.
“It is understood the body was found close to the site of his mobile phone’s last location.
“Although formal identification is yet to be carried out, the body was found with Mr Slater’s possessions and clothes.
“LBT Global are supporting the family at this distressing time and ask for everyone to afford them space and privacy to come to terms with the news.”
Jay’s devastated mum Debbie Duncan had just today told of the the “heartache” the family are suffering.
Spanish police said the body was located in a “very inaccessible area”.
They added: “The results of the autopsy are awaiting confirmation that it is an accident.”
The mountain rescue group continued looking for the missing man when they were on duty and have now found the remains of a person they believe is him
Civil Guard
A Civil Guard spokesman said the body was found at around 10am – some two hours before going public with the information.
He said: “The large-scale operation involving multiple units had been suspended but as we always said, we never stopped looking for Jay.
“The mountain rescue group continued looking for the missing man when they were on duty and have now found the remains of a person they believe is him.”
Asked whether the force could say exactly where the human remains had been found, he said: “In the area near Masca is all I can say at the moment.”
He added: “We’ve always said the terrain is a very difficult terrain and the search was complicated.”
Statement from charity LBT Global
“It is understood the body was found close to the site of his mobile phone’s last location.
“Although formal identification is yet to be carried out, the body was found with Mr Slater’s possessions and clothes.
“A post mortem and forensic enquiries will follow.
“LBT Global are supporting the family at this distressing time and ask for everyone to afford them space and privacy to come to terms with the news.”
A spokesperson for Lancashire Police said they have been notified by the Civil Guard that a body has been found – and that “the indications are that this is Jay Slater”.
They added: “While at this stage no formal identification has been carried out our thoughts are very much with Jay’s family at this time, and we continue to offer them our support.”
Jay travelled to the unforgiving mountainous area in the early hours of June 17 with two men after a night of partying.
He then left in the morning, but after learning he’d missed the bus started trying to do the 11-hour trek back to his own accommodation.
One of the men – convicted drug dealer Ayub Qassim – says Jay left the house alive.
Jay made a final frantic call to friend Lucy Law to say he was lost, had one per cent phone battery, and needed water.
In an earlier call to friend Brad, his feet could be heard slipping on the rocks.
Former investigator Mark Williams-Thomas – who has been working on the case for weeks – claims to have spoke to Qassim and was told the teen woke up asking to leave the home as he was hungry.
Qassim, who rented out the holiday let, says Jay wanted to go home so he could “get a scran”, and was planning on catching a bus.
Mark says that Qassim told him “no bus is coming”, and offered to drive him after taking a nap, but the teen left anyway.
It has since been claimed by Mark that Jay left in a panic and was “scared” to return to the Airbnb.
Tenerife is known as a dangerous place after dark with the holiday hotspot being stuck in a bitter turf war between British drug gangs and the feared Italian mafia.
Despite this, there is no suggestion that Jay was linked to drugs with cops finding no link to criminality in the case.
Lucy reported Jay missing to Spanish cops a few hours after their final phone call – sparking a huge search across the island that would last for almost two weeks.
Jay’s upset mum Debbie Duncan quickly rushed over to Tenerife to help cops with their investigation.
She was later followed by Jay’s older brother Zak, 24, and his dad Warren Slater, 58, as well as a number of volunteers.
The case quickly gained global attention as the family called for help to scour the mountains where Jay’s phone last pinged on June 17.
Jay’s final location showed he was near Rural de Teno Park – a massive barren landscape filled with bushes and rocks.
Dozens of rescue workers and the Spanish Guardia Civil all took to the mountain range using sniffer dogs, drones, a helicopter and volunteers.
A GoFundMe page was set up to raise money for missing Jay Slater’s family by Lucy which hit over £50,000 in a month.
Debbie revealed she would be withdrawing some of the donations to fly supporters out to Tenerife to help with the hunt just weeks into the search.
But after cops had no success, the official search was called off on June 30 after two weeks.
Jay’s heartbroken and frustrated family vowed to carry on the hunt regardless.
A new team led by local hiker Juan Garcia, and including Jay’s uncle Glen Duncan, dad Warren and brother Zak, focused on an area of a gorge close before exploring caves, ravines and slopes.
Seasoned mountain experts who were flown out by Jay’s family said the search was hampered by the altitude, heat and the size of the area.
Warren voiced similar concerns over the huge area they needed to look through.
He warned it would’ve taken “an army 10 years” to search the whole area as the distraught father pleaded with Interpol and British cops to help.
