Jay Slater’s mum slams Tenerife cops for not letting Brit police officers join gruelling hunt for missing teen in ravine
MISSING Jay Slater’s mum has raged against Tenerife police for not letting British cops fly out and join the search for her son.
The teen, from Lancashire, has been missing on the island since Monday morning and a desperate search is underway to track him down.
Jay, 19, vanished on holiday with two friends prompting his parents, friends and extended family to fly out and join in the search effort.
Cops are currently focusing on a 2,000ft ravine and the surrounding Masca area in the mountainous north of Tenerife.
On Friday Lancashire Constabulary offered to help Spain’s Guardia Civil in their efforts to find the teenager.
But local police rejected the bid and insisted they have the “resources” required to find him.
Today Jay’s worried mum Debbie Duncan has slammed the decision and said she has even screamed and shouted at members of the local force.
She told Mail Online: “I know the Spanish police mean well, but the problem we are having is the language barrier, we just don’t seem to be getting told. I’m sure they are doing their best.
“They told me they had used dogs and drones and then they said Lancashire police had offered their resources but they turned it down, but I think that would have really helped.
“I would feel happier if our people were over helping. It’s just so difficult not knowing where he is, the area and the terrain is rough, but the police were saying that now there are too many people up there and it could interfere with their investigation.”
It comes as…
- Bombshell new vid shows Jay at a rave hours being he vanished
- Pics show Airbnb teen partied at before going missing
- Jay was spotted ‘walking alone’ by locals
- Jay’s mum was sent a message saying “kiss goodbye to your son” amid family fears he’s been kidnapped
- She gave a tearful plea and said “I just want my baby back”
- His family have endured days of bogus theories and sick messages from trolls
- Cops searched the teen’s hotel room in Tenerife for clues
- Owner of the AirBnB Jay stayed in on Sunday saw him walking off on his own uphill in the Masca mountains
- A possible new sighting of the teen placed him with two men on Monday at 6pm – 10 hours after he vanished
Mountain rescue turned their efforts to an area known locally as “the badlands” yesterday, scouring a 2,000ft ravine in a remote park.
Today firefighters, sniffer dogs, cops and volunteers returned to the hilly terrain to continue their search.
Jay’s last-known location was on a mountain road on the north west side of the island on Monday, in the desolate Teno Nature Reserve.
Locals and experts have warned of the treacherous conditions in the area – where the air is “thin”, temperatures change rapidly and the mountains drop sharply to the water below.
Andrew Knight, who runs Sanasty Car Hire Tenerife, has lent his vehicles to help in the hunt.
He told The Mirror: “You’re up there, it’s very thin air, you’ve got cloud around.
“It does go very cold at night, especially with the thin air and the wind chill. It would be pretty cold if you were up there without jumpers and jackets and things.”
And Jonathan Stones, who moved to Tenerife more than two decades ago at 13, said the Teno Nature Reserve is one of the island’s most inhospitable spots.
He told The Sun: “Where Jay was last located through his mobile phone is where he stands the least chance of survival.
“The desolate landscapes around the island’s holiday hotspots are referred to as ‘malpais’ by locals — a word that translates into English as ‘bad land’.”
Debbie, speaking from Tenerife, also revealed today that her son may have been spotted with two men some ten hours after he was last seen on Monday morning.
She told Mail Online: “Someone has come forward to say they saw someone who they thought was Jay walking back down the road sat on a bench.
“He was with two men looking a bit worse for wear, and they were by a church, this guy has come forward and told the police about it and they are looking into it.
“We don’t know if it was Jay for sure, but it’s a start.”
Debbie, 55, has been in Tenerife since Tuesday helping with the massive police search for her 19-year-old son.
She described her distress as the amount of bogus conspiracy theories being bandied around online: “I’ve seen some things on social media but now I’m staying off that, I’m just shattered, I’m so exhausted.”
A statement from Lancashire cops on Friday read: “First and foremost, our thoughts are with Jay’s family at this time.
“They must be going through the most distressing ordeal not knowing what has happened to their loved one.
“We have specialist officers who are continuing to support Jay’s family.
“Whilst this case falls outside the jurisdiction of UK policing, we have made an offer of support to the Guardia Civil to see if they need any additional resources.
“They have confirmed that at this time they are satisfied that they have the resources they need, but that offer remains open and they will contact us should that position change.
“Once again, our thoughts remain with Jay’s family and friends at this distressing time.”
Timeline of Jay Slater’s disappearance
By Ellie Doughty, Foreign News Reporter
SUNDAY JUNE 16 – MONDAY 17
Jay goes to a rave at the 2024 NRG music festival in Tenerife, around Arona on the south of the island
8.35pm – Jay posts a smiling Snapchat video of him laughing with friends
He leaves the rave with two men he met that day and is driven back to their accommodation across the island
MONDAY 17
7.30am – Jay posts a Snapchat of a hand holding a cigarette in the area where the accommodation was – near the rural de Teno Park on the north of the island
8.30am – Jay calls his friend Lucy Law and tells her he missed a bus, had one per cent of battery left on his phone and was stuck in the “middle of nowhere”
9am – A missing persons report is filed and the search for Jay begins
TUESDAY 18
2am – Police knock on the door of Jay’s mum Debbie Duncan’s home and tell her to catch the first flight out to Tenerife
7am – She flies out from Manchester Airport alongside her son Zak to help with the search
Debbie is sent a Snapchat message saying “Kiss goodbye to your boy, you’re never going to see him again, he owes me a lot of money.”
WEDNESDAY 19
12.30pm – Police move the search to the south of the island briefly after a false sighting
Cops search his hotel room for clues as his mum says there was “nothing untoward there”
Debbie gives a heart-wrenching interview where she shares fears he has been “taken” and says “I just want my baby back”
THURSDAY 20
Cops begin day four of the massive search for Jay
FRIDAY 21
Lancashire cops offer to help with the search but Tenerife authorities say they are “satisfied that they have the resources they need”
Search turns to 22,000ft ravine in Masca – part of an area dubbed “the badlands” by locals
SATURDAY 22
The sixth day of the search begins with sniffer dogs, cops, mountain rescue and firefighters again taking to the hills in northern Tenerife