The search for missing British teenager Jay Slater in Tenerife has entered its second week, with family and friends sharing an image of a possible sighting.
Jay, 19, was reported missing by his friends on the Spanish island last Monday (17 June). He reportedly wandered alone into a mountainous area in the Rural de Teno Park, near the village of Masca, after leaving an Airbnb rental where he had stayed with two acquaintances from the NRG music festival.
Intensive searches involving Civil Guard officers, firefighters and mountain rescuers have been ongoing in the vast area since his disappearance.
Jay’s loved ones believe there may have been a possible sighting of him in Santiago del Teide, approximately 7km from Masca. They claim a blurry image shows a male resembling Jay walking past a church in the village around 6pm on Monday, about ten hours after he was last heard from.
The Civil Guard has not confirmed whether they are investigating this sighting. Family friend Rachel Hargreaves stated that the police are exploring all leads.
Speaking from Santiago del Teide, Jay’s father Warren expressed concerns about his son’s disappearance: “You wonder if somebody has got him. No matter how intoxicated you are, you wouldn’t go off that road up there. People are around… you don’t walk along that road for more than 20 minutes without someone stopping or passing you.”
Warren added, “It started as a case of a lad who had gone walking and got lost, or may have fallen. But it doesn’t make sense. Nobody would walk off that road. Why would he have gone uphill? It’s dangerous; it’s a massive mountain.”
A fundraiser set up by Jay’s friend Lucy has reached its £30,000 target. The organisers stated that no funds have been withdrawn yet, and expenses are currently being covered by the family.
Jay’s mother, Debbie Duncan, said she had not slept since her son’s disappearance. She expressed uncertainty about whether Spanish authorities had turned down offers of help from the UK, wondering if they viewed it as “an insult”.
As the search enters its seventh day, efforts have included drones, helicopters, fire crews, search dogs and mountain rescue teams. On Sunday, search teams narrowed their focus to a small hut near where Jay’s phone last “pinged”. Emergency workers are concentrating on a 30-kilometre area, encompassing the Masca Gorge, La Vica, Las Portelas and the surrounding Masca area.
