Jay Slater’s angry family slam ‘horrible’ conspiracy theorists for ‘getting in way’ of hunt & say: ‘The trolls have won’
JAY Slater’s furious family have blasted cruel conspiracy theorists for hampering the hunt for the missing teen.
Cops in Tenerife called off their search for the missing Brit after 14 days – and his family feel the “trolls have won”.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun today, a family source said Jay’s heartbroken family have no plans to give up until they find out what happened to the Lancashire teen when he vanished on June 17.
But attempts to find Jay have often been overshadowed by vile internet trolls and insensitive conspiracy theorists.
It comes as…
- Search for Jay ends
- Jay’s family will keep searching for the teen
- Search for teen hits ‘make or break’ stage
- Jay Slater’s pal sparked more confusion claiming teen met mystery men
- Brother Zak and dad Warren join the search – with Jay’s father hitting back at trolls criticising family
- Brit climber scours Tenerife ravine for clues after pal ‘heard him slip’
- Crews fear he won’t be found alive if he vanished in mountains
- Cops investigate new lead after ‘theft of Rolex’ hours before teen vanished
- Expert says Jay may have fallen into a gorge
- Ghoulish Brits treat his disappearance as a tourist attraction
- The GoFundMe page for his family hits £40,000
- Jay vanishes after a night out
The family source from the UK said: “Jay’s family can’t help thinking the trolls have won and that they have got the way.
“So many people have been putting horrible messages out there which has only added to the family’s torment.”
Parents Debbie, Warren and older brother Zak were said to have been “blindsided” by the speed at which the decision to end the search was made.
The trio all plan to stay on the island until they get some clarity on the situation.
The source said: “They will not stop looking for Jay or giving up. They will be staying in Tenerife and trying to do all they can to keep momentum going and to find Jay.
“They’ve been trying to get in touch with groups in Tenerife and beyond who specialise in missing persons.”
It comes after Spanish cops dramatically halted the search for Jay after a two-week search found no trace of the teen.
The mammoth hunt saw sniffer dogs, drones, a helicopter, dozens of volunteers and mountain rescue experts all deployed across the island.
The decision to call it off came from the Civil Guard who declared: “The search operation has now finished although the case remains open.”
The source said: “Jay’s family knew the search would eventually wind down. They get that. But it was a nightmare scenario they didn’t want to think about.
“And it wasn’t something they thought wouldn’t happen immediately.
“So for the decision to be made after just two weeks has left them bewildered and bereft.
“Is two weeks really long enough to say you’ve looked everywhere?”
The “heartbroken and devastated” family are now looking to get answers themselves.
Their first move is to to appeal to British cops to try and help.
Debbie has previously called on the Spanish police to do more in the operations after they didn’t allow cops from the UK to fly out and join in the search.
The Lancashire Constabulary offered to help Spain’s Guardia Civil in their efforts to find the teenager in the first week of the teen’s disappearance.
But local police rejected the bid and insisted they have the “resources” required to find him.
“They may also try to appeal, again, to the British Police to help. They don’t understand why the police in Tenerife wouldn’t welcome the extra support and help which was being offered,” he source added.
“What did they have to lose? If every stone had been left unturned Jay’s family would be able to accept this. But it doesn’t feel like that’s the case.”
The Slater family have vowed to stay in Tenerife for “however long it takes” to locate Jay saying they have “no intention of going home”.
It comes as Debbie announced she would be withdrawing some of the £40,000 raised through a GoFundMe for Jay.
Debbie said the cash would be used to help search teams scour the island and cover the families accommodation and food while there.
Jay’s family can’t help thinking the trolls have won and that they have got the way
source close to the family
A family source told The Sun: “Dipping into the funds isn’t something the family have done lightly – but they’ve been left with no choice.
“They are determined to remain in Tenerife for however long it takes to get to the bottom of what has happened to Jay.
“The family are bereft right now – but for his mother and father especially, being in Tenerife means they are on the ground as soon as any news comes in.
“They are also desperate to keep momentum going around the search. Every second counts in finding Jay.”
Volunteers who have helped in the desperate hunt for Jay gave the family some hope after vowing to stay on the island today.
TikTok explorer Paul Arnott posted online that he plans on moving the volunteers to a new search location in hopes of finding a fresh lead.
‘Trolls have won’
The Civil Guard made comments in the past fortnight saying how the rescue operations could be hindered by online chatter.
They warned that conspiracy theories and made-up leads would only make the search harder.
Warren Slater ripped into online sleuths at the search site yesterday telling them to imagine the heartache he was feeling.
Alongside his son Zak, he told keyboard warriors to come to Tenerife and “see for themselves” how difficult the search is.
Investigator Mark Williams-Thomas has been working alongside the family to try and piece together the case.
The former detective spoke on the idiotic online trolls labelled them as “vile”.
“Jay has his past but the family need some sort of respect. To those on social media, think before you post,” Mark said.
“If you wouldn’t say it to your family don’t say it to Jay’s. These claims have been given to police.”
I really hope I am not taking my son home in a body bag
Debbie Duncan
Jay’s friends were also forced to condemn idiotic TikTok sleuths who jetted off to Tenerife in a twisted bid to join the hunt.
Many of his pals have even been forced to respond to “horrible lies” being spread online causing the mystery to deepen.
A number of horrific death hoaxes have also been shared on social media in the past two weeks.
A spineless troll pretending to be a family friend posted: “Jay’s body has been found. Our hearts are with his family in these evil times, we’ve heard from locals that it was the job of Morrocans(sic).”
Jay’s heartbroken mum has also said she felt “very let down” after sleuths started questioning what more than £30,000 raised on a GoFundMe page would be used for.
Debbie said: “I am really am saddened by all your comments. You seem to be so bothered about this GoFundMe page.
“I really hope I am not taking my son home in a body bag.”
Five questions still unanswered in Jay Slater's disappearance
By James Halpin
Missing Rolex after ‘scuffle’
Police launched a new probe on Saturday morning over the theft of a Rolex watch just hours before Jay disappeared.
It is unclear exactly how Jay’s disappearance might be linked but one of Jay’s pals told detectives the alleged theft may have led to Jay wandering off on his own to try and find the watch.
The Rolex disappeared when a fight broke out at the club Jay was partying at with investigators questioning taxi drivers and bar staff present on the strip.
Police clear duo
Two mystery Brits who partied with Jay Slater on the night of his disappearance were labelled “not relevant” by investigators.
Investigator Mark Williams-Thomas said the men stayed with Jay at an Airbnb cottage in Tenerife before he vanished.
They are said to both be in their late 30s or early 40s and from Luton, Bedfordshire, with one going by the nickname “Johnny Vegas”.
The men were only briefly asked to speak with cops before being allowed to fly home to the UK.
Just six volunteers for ‘massive’ search
Yesterday, Tenerife cops launched what they called a “massive” new search with the help of specialist volunteers to find the 19-year-old Brit.
However, just six volunteers reportedly turned up, claimed Tiktoker Paul Arnott, 29, who flew in to help with the search.
Jay’s father Warren and older brother Zak were seen at the search site.
The area being searched is a 2000ft ravine that has a steep hiking trail traversing it down to the sea.
Mystery final phone calls
Jay’s last phone call to his pal Lucy Law has been shrouded in mystery with it springing up several questions.
The 18-year-old woman told reporters Jay had called her in a panic at around 8.30am on Monday June 17.
She recalled him saying he wasn’t able to catch a bus and was going to start walking back to his flat.
Jay told her his phone was almost out of power, that he had cut his leg on a prickly cactus and he badly needed a drink.
Pinging phone
Search teams narrowed their efforts to a small group of buildings close to where Jay’s phone last pinged, but found nothing last week.
Jay took a 45 minutes car journey with two men to an Airbnb near Masco in the Rural de Teno, a national park in the island’s north.
He posted a Snapchat picture at the £40-a-night digs at around 7.30am appearing to show him holding a cigarette and walking down some stone steps.
After deciding to leave the cottage, Jay rang Lucy before his mobile went dead at 8.50am near a hiking trail in the park.
The young Brit vanished after a night out at the NRG festival at Papagayo nightclub in Playa de las Americas on June 17.
He was last seen travelling with the two mystery men in the north of the island in the Rural de Teno park.
The morning after he made a final frantic phone call to pal Lucy to tell her he was stranded in the “middle of nowhere”.
Panicked Jay, facing an 11-hour walk back to their hotel, told her he needed water and only had one per cent of battery left on his phone.
His other friend Brad Hargreaves revealed a second call in which Jay told him he had veered off the main path – leading to speculation he may have slid down rocks.
Brad said he could hear the missing teen slipping on rocks during a final video call.
The disappearance sparked a desperate round-the-clock search with his heartbroken mum and family jetting out to the island to join the hunt.
Rescue crews focused their efforts around the 2,000ft Masca ravine close to Jay’s last known location – the desolate Teno Nature Reserve.
On Thursday, they shifted their focus to caves near Los Carrizales – around an hour and a half on foot from the Airbnb Jay went to with the two men.
Apprentice bricklayer Jay had flown out to Tenerife with friends Lucy and Brad for the New Rave Generation (NRG) festival, which ended on Sunday.
His final Snapchat picture was an out-of-focus image of a hand holding cigarettes in Buenavista del Norte, which sits within Rural de Teno park, at around 7.30am on Monday.
It was taken at the location he went to with the two men he met at the club – with haunting pictures showing the inside of the Airbnb.
It is claimed he was spotted “walking alone” by locals before his disappearance.
Timeline of Jay Slater’s disappearance
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
Possible new sighting of Jay places him near a church with two men at 6pm on Monday – although unconfirmed by police
Jay’s dad Warren and brother Zak visit the search site in Tenerife
SUNDAY 23
Cops focus their search around small outbuildings in de Teno park near where Jay’s phone last pinged
Jay’s mum Debbie says trolls are comparing her to Karen Matthews
The GoFundMe set up by Jay’s friend Lucy surpasses £30,000 after just three days
Exclusive Sun footage shows Jay appearing to fall and stumble back up at a rave before he vanished
MONDAY 24
Search for Jay enters eighth day
Police expand search area north to parts of Buenavista del Norte
Jay’s dad says his family are in ‘a living hell’
TUESDAY 25
Brit hiker found by Jay search teams says he ‘didn’t need to be saved’
Madeleine McCann cop lands in Tenerife to join search
Tenerife cops call in reinforcements from Madrid – including specialist sniffer dogs
WEDNESDAY 26
Locals claim they have spotted Jay watching Euros
Investigator reveals descriptions of two men Jay partied with
Cops scour exact spot where ‘mystery grainy figure’ was seen
THURSDAY 27
Detectives ‘fear it’s unlikely Jay will be found alive if in mountains’
Search hones in on series of caves in desolate park
Family ‘turn to help of TikTok sleuth’
FRIDAY 28
GoFundMe goes £10,000 over target as it hits £40,000
Tenerife cops announce huge search for Jay & appeal for volunteers
SATURDAY 29
Cops launch a massive new search for Jay as they call on volunteers to help out
Investigators rule out two mystery Brits seen with Jay before his disappearance
SUNDAY 30
The search for Jay Slater is called off