Jay Slater's father has issued a further update on the search in Tenerife for the missing Brit teenager – and sent a defiant message to cruel online trolls who have riled up hate online in the wake of his disappearance.
The search for Jay entered it's 12th day on Saturday, with a "macro search" carried out by police on the island in the hope of uncovering new signs of his whereabouts. The 19-year-old, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, was last heard from on a Monday morning two weeks ago when he told a friend he planned to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus, a journey expected to take around 11 hours on foot.
His friend Lucy Mae, who had gone to the island with him to attend the NRG music festival, said that he had stayed with people he had met on holiday after a night out.
She said she had received a call from Mr Slater at around 8.15am on Monday after he missed the bus and was trying to walk back although he had said he was lost, needed a drink of water and had only 1% battery on his phone. Jay’s phone then cut off, with his last location showing as the Rural de Teno park – a mountainous area popular with hikers.
Jay’s dad Warren, 58, visited the search site alongside Jay’s older brother Zak on Saturday. Warren is estranged, but on good terms with Jay’s mum Debbie Duncan, 55. Speaking about today’s search operation, he said: “It’s a bit disappointing that there are no British apart from [British TikTokker] Paul, but I suppose to them he’s just a British lad who’s come out here and got drunk.
“I’m grateful to those who have come out here because you can see just how dangerous it is and what gets me is the trollers who are having a go at us for not searching.
“It’s not the local park, these are big mountains, the terrain is dangerous, put yourself in our position would you go out in these conditions? It’s tough, it’s hard, we are leaving it to the professionals and I’m grateful for those who have turned out today and I want to thank them for what they are doing.”
Warren added: “We just still can’t believe it; it’s been so tough on us, and I want people to think about us as parents and what we are going through. All those trollers having a go at us, they don’t know how we feel, why don’t they come up here and have a look and see for themselves how dangerous it is.
“I’ve come up here now myself because I wanted to have a look about with Zak and to thank those who are up here and have given their time. I just didn’t think this would go on for so long, I dropped his mum and brother off at the airport and thought they would be back in a few days.
“I just thought he’s gone out had a drink and ended up at some girl’s place as we all did when we were younger, he’s our youngest I just want him home.”
Warren's words come as the Spanish cop leading the mountain search for missing Jay Slater declared that the two British men who put the vanished teen up the night before he disappeared are "of no relevance" to the police investigation.
Cipriano Martin, head of the Civil Guard’s Greim mountain rescue unit, said: "Those men have been spoken to and they don’t have any relevance whatsoever for the case." Asked whether Jay's family will take part in today's search, he said: “All week they’ve been participating because we’ve seen them and they’ve seen us in several places. They’ve been actively participating.”
Police are also now reportedly probing claims of a nightclub scuffle over a stolen Rolex in the hours before the teenager vanished. A fight broke out outside Papagayo Beach Club - where Jay was pictured partying - and it involved a man who claimed his Rolex watch had been stolen, it's been claimed.