AS I stood in the sweltering, remote mountains of Masca I was told the news Jay Slater’s loved ones dreaded – his body had been found.
But for his devastated family, it didn’t bring the closure they so desperately needed.
Ian WhittakerJay was found dead in Tenerife last July, 29 days after he went missing[/caption] Louis WoodJay’s mum Debbie with pictures of her beloved son[/caption] SolarpixThe 19-year-old with mum Debbie and brother Zak[/caption] Ian WhittakerJay’s dad Warren and brother Zak out searching in Tenerife[/caption] Debbie Duncan with The Sun’s Katie DavisLouis WoodNow almost a year on, his grief-stricken mum, dad and brother have been subjected to yet more torment as an inquest into his death dredged up painful details of his disappearance – while lacking any actual answers.
Jay’s courageous mum Debbie Duncan opened up to me just weeks after his body was found about how she was tortured by not knowing what happened to her beloved son before he fell to his death.
I was humbled by the bravery she showed in the face of living every parent’s worst nightmare on the world stage – relentlessly hounded by mindless trolls.
Spineless witnesses failing to turn up to the hearing to provide crucial information is a kick in the teeth for Debbie and his already suffering family.
The 19-year-old went missing 11 months ago, and his body tragically discovered 29 days later.
So why after all these months has the court failed to bring together vital witnesses – including the two friends he was on holiday with?
After months and months of battling through their grief, the last thing Jay’s family needed was to face a farce of a hearing without the necessary witnesses.
Jay‘s disappearance and death remain largely cloaked in mystery and glaring gaps in his final movements need to be filled.
Was a Rolex really stolen? Why did Jay leave the Airbnb? Why did he walk the wrong way? Why didn’t he charge his phone?
In more than a decade of reporting, I have never covered a case with as many twists and turns.
Jay’s disappearance rapidly became a national obsession as cynical, clueless armchair detectives spent every waking minute shamelessly peddling wild conspiracy theories on countless social media pages.
Pathetic arguments from idiotic ghouls that they were just trying to fill the gaps in a mystery was a disgraceful attempt at justifying their exploitation of a tragedy.
And their indefensible posting clearly served no purpose as we are still no closer to finding out what really happened to Jay in his final moments.
What is arguably more shocking is the fact the inquest has failed to shed any more light and track down key witnesses.
I watched on in Tenerife as Jay’s dad and brother admirably faced the unforgiving elements of the mountains day after day to hunt for any sign of the teenager.
The agony plaguing them and Debbie was clear on their faces as weeks slipped by with no news.
STEVE ALLENJay’s mum Debbie Duncan pictured today outside Preston Coroner’s Court[/caption] ReutersRescue teams search the rocky ravine where Jay’s body was found[/caption] Ayub Qassim took Jay back to an Airbnb in remote Masca Steve ReigateThe Airbnb where Jay went before he disappeared[/caption]Their worlds then crumbled when Jay’s body was eventually found in the blistering heat of northern Tenerife.
The very least those who saw Jay in his final hours could have done was try to help bring his family some sort of closure by revealing every last detail they knew.
It baffles me how so-called friends and other witnesses could watch Debbie sob at his funeral and not feel any sort of moral compass to do the right thing.
When I met with Debbie last summer, she rightfully said she wanted answers from the two men who took Jay back to their Airbnb in the remote mountainous village of Masca.
She fought back tears as she told how she “could not get her head around” why Jay went with them to the white-washed apartment more than an hour’s drive away.
These two British men – one of them convicted drug dealer Ayub Qassim – have steered clear of his inquest and making any contact with Jay’s family.
Cowardly is the word that comes to mind.
Glaring Jay Slater mysteries that now may NEVER be solved
By Georgie English, Foreign News Reporter
Here are four of the biggest unanswered questions still hanging over the tragic case of Jay Slater.
The missing Rolex
Taxi drivers and bar staff who were working near the Papagayo Beach Club where the teen was partying on June 17 were questioned by investigators after a fight reportedly erupted on the Tenerife strip.
A pricey Rolex watch was claimed to have been stolen during the brawl.
Any link between Jay and the stolen watch was never established by police but the theory continued to throw up questions – even as mum Debbie Duncan dismissed Jay being a thief as a vile rumour.
But the latest development at the inquest has seen the Rolex mentioned once again.
Josh Forshaw, who met Jay as they boarded a plane from Manchester to Tenerife, said he received a message from the teen before he vanished.
It read: “Ended up getting thrown out with two Mali kids, just took an AP [luzxury watch strap] off somebody and was on the way to sell it.”
Josh told the hearing via videolink that Jay revealed he was planning to sell the strap for “10 quid” – a slang term for £10,000.
A dangerous route back
When Jay left the Airbnb in the early hours of the morning he is said to have taken a perilous route back to his apartment near to the strip in Los Cristianos.
The journey would have taken him over 10 hours to complete but the rough and rocky terrain and unbearable heat meant the trip was near impossible.
It is believed that Jay would have had no idea where he was going or which direction was the correct way to go.
The inquest heard that three construction workers who said, via video link, they saw Jay on the main road walking through the remote village of Masca.
He asked them about bus times, they said.
But some time after this conversation took place his mobile last pinged in the mountainous Rural de Teno Park.
This suggests that the teen walked the wrong way from the Airbnb from where he was supposed to be heading.
Fleeing the Airbnb
The mystery around why Jay made the treacherous journey was clouded with questions after Qassim claimed he had offered the Brit a lift moments before he walked off alone.
Qassim claimed he told Jay he would drop him back into the main town after he had properly woken up in the morning.
But a desperate Jay refused to wait around as he said he was hungry and wanted to get home as soon as possible.
Jay then asked a woman how often the buses arrived as she said “every 10 minutes”.
Qassim believed Jay was going to wait for the bus so he went back to sleep.
The court has now summoned two of the three men at the Airbnb in Qassim and Steven Roccas (“Rocky”) to explain what happened that morning at the inquest.
Neither have been tracked down as of yet, it is believed.
One per cent battery
Another key mystery around Jay’s disappearance is why he left the Airbnb with such little charge left on his phone.
Pal Lucy said during their final phone call that Jay revealed he had just one per cent left before hanging up.
It was later claimed that Jay had several chances to charge his phone before he went off by himself.
Qassim told an investigator who went to Spain that Jay asked for a charger almost as soon as he arrived at the Airbnb.
He said he told the Brit to go into a room where another friend was sleeping and borrow his charger.
But the nearest socket was in a separate room from where Jay was due to crash for the night.
It is unclear if Jay ever charged his phone in the end.
He said he told the Brit to go into a room where another friend was sleeping and borrow his charger.
But the nearest socket was in a separate room from where Jay was due to crash for the night.
It is unclear if Jay ever charged his phone in the end.
However, DCI Rachel Higson, head of digital media investigations at Lancashire Police, explained his phone was still on for some time after he left the apartment.
At today’s hearing she said Jay’s phone recorded “a lot of steps and inclines” during a 50-minute period on the morning of his disappearance.
Ridiculously, Qassim attempted to tell sleuths to “have a bit of respect” when he recorded a live stream on Instagram while failing to show any himself.
Jay’s distressed mum in court rightfully begged for the pair to be brought into the hearing so they can finally reveal what actually happened at the Airbnb and why the teenager left.
While reporting on Jay’s heartbreaking case, it was a storm to get to the truth as endless theories and pieces of information circluated online.
This failed hearing has reopened those wounds for the family – and has no doubt reignited keyboard-bashing wannabe sleuths rather than bringing Jay’s family closure they deserve.
Qassim and his friend Steven Roccar know exactly what happened at that Airbnb. They know why Jay left.
To my mind, this inquest must surely have served only to cause more pain to Jay’s poor family.
After Jay’s loved ones were dragged through hours of pain today, the coroner decided to adjourn the inquest.
Why they scheduled it in the first place without tracing witnesses will have inflicted needless heartache on Jay’s family, who will now have to return to court in however many months.
If witnesses have any shred of decency, they will be there.
The Sun’s Chief Foreign Reporter (Digital) Katie Davis in Masca, TenerifeIan WhittakerWhat happened to Jay Slater?
JAY Slater flew to the Spanish island last June to attend the NRG music festival in Playa de las Americas with two friends, Lucy Law and Brad Hargreaves.
The teen travelled to an Airbnb apartment in Masca with two men – including convicted drug dealer Ayub Qassim – in the early hours of June 17.
Jay posted a final Snapchat picture of himself smoking on the doorstep of the apartment at 7.30am on June 17 before leaving at around 8am.
Jay, of Oswaldtwistle, Lancs, made a heartbreaking final call to friend Lucy saying he had cut his leg, was lost, dehydrated and had just one per cent battery on his phone after he left the Airbnb.
He was attempting the treacherous 10-hour walk back to his apartment in Los Cristianos when he called Lucy to say he was lost.
DCI Rachel Higson, head of digital media investigations at Lancashire Police, told the hearing today that Jay’s phone recorded “a lot of steps and inclines” between 7.59am and 8.49am.
His mobile last pinged in the mountainous Rural de Teno Park after Jay walked the wrong way from the Airbnb, and DCI Higson said there was “no data recorded” after 8.49:51am.
After a month-long search, Jay’s body was found in a ravine on July 15 last year – near to where his phone last pinged.
A post-mortem examination concluded he died of traumatic head injuries, consistent with a fall from height.
Home Office pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd today told the inquest Jay suffered a “heavy fall from height” and the “devastating” effects would have been “immediate”.
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