Jay Slater’s family have said they are “hopeful” the teenager will return as they launch a new search today (July 6).
His father Warren and brother Zak joined a group of 10 volunteers who combed the mountainous terrain in Tenerife where the 19-year-old went missing. The group endured hours of scorching 25C heat as they searched the valley near the village of Masca.
The teenager’s uncle, Glen Duncan, has joined the search for the missing man, who has been missing for nearly three weeks, describing each passing day as “simply torture” as they desperately wait for any news.
READ MORE: Jay Slater goes missing in Tenerife LIVE updates, chilling new theory emerges and mother makes new statement
He said: “We just went out with a few Spanish volunteers. They went through there on foot and with dogs, and there were obviously areas searched by helicopters and drones. To me, he’s not here. That’s the impression I get.”
Mr Duncan noted his limited contact with local authorities: “Who knows what the police are doing here, who knows? They’re not really in touch, it’s all a bit vague. They’re not revealing anything. I was close to Jay. He was just a typical, wonderful young boy with a wide circle of friends who just liked to have a good time. He was looking forward to coming here. It’s his first children’s holiday, we’ve all been there, haven’t we?” the Mirror reported.
“We’re still holding on to hope – we have to hold on because we don’t know. She hasn’t been found, so you have to hold on to hope. I’m sure Madeleine McCann’s parents are still holding on to that hope, 20 years later, she’s halfway across the world somewhere. She’s never been found and there’s no evidence of what happened to her. It’s too dangerous out there. Look at me. I’m not a climber, I’m not a hiker.
“It’s easy to get lost there. There was a group of people and you couldn’t see anyone. There was a point where I wasn’t even looking for my nephew, I was just trying to find my own safe path. If he had wandered off, I don’t see how he could have wandered there. When you’re lost, you just go off the beaten path. I don’t know if he was afraid of someone or something.”
Speaking about online trolls spreading sick rumours, Mr Duncan said: “I’m not on social media or anything else so I can block that out. That’s the world we live in. If he went down a path like this and got lost or fell down there, I think he would have been found by now. I was thinking from the start that there was a third party involved. There are things that already exist. Why would two young people rent a villa here? They’re on the strip, you know how it is over there.
“There are millions of apartments and hotels in Los Cristianos and Las Americas. Right away, that’s suspicious in itself. Then apparently someone who was there came out and said he arrived safe and sound and left safe. That line is suspicious in itself. The fact that he came out and said all his friends left him and he had nowhere to go, his apartment in Los Cristianos was 10 minutes away. He’s not stupid. If he didn’t have the room key, he could have gone to the reception and gotten a new one.
“I don’t know what the police are taking seriously. I don’t know if they’re following up on every single lead. I want to walk over there myself and barge into the police station. What are they actually doing at the moment, the police, I mean they’re not searching with helicopters, are they? Are they doing door-to-door enquiries or are they sitting there looking at CCTV footage?”
Mr Duncan also questioned why the two Airbnb men were deemed uninvolved by Spanish police so early on: “I was confused from day one. How can you say they were uninvolved when they were two of the last two people to see him alive? It doesn’t make sense. I can’t understand it. It’s like one of you guys has just disappeared and the rest of you have flown home and you’re saying you don’t care. It’s a huge disappointment. That’s one of them – you don’t want to beat them up. I can’t step on their toes.”
“We need to maintain good relations. That’s why it’s so strange, I want to keep it there. There’s 10 of us out there today. I don’t know how long we’re going to be out here. How long is a piece of string? Debbie and Warren aren’t going anywhere.”
Mr Duncan added: “Jay was a typical 19-year-old, so very family-oriented. Unlike many 19-year-olds, he got on very well with my two daughters. Many 19-year-olds stay away from children.”
“Every day is torture. We’ve reached a point where the sadness is gone and only anger remains.”
Mr Duncan also spoke of little recent contact with Jay’s friend Lucy Law – the last person known to have spoken to him. A frazzled family friend, Rachel Hargreaves, said: “We’re just looking for him, we can’t find him, we can’t find him. I’m here to support the family, trying to find Jay as much as we can.”
Apprentice bricklayer Jay, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancs, went missing on the Spanish island on June 17. He was last known to have been seen leaving an Airbnb near the village of Masca at around 8am.
The young man, who was on holiday with his friends Lucy (18) and Brad Hargreaves (19), had earlier been partying at the Papagayo nightclub in Playa de las Americas. After the party, he left with the two British men to return to their accommodation.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help Jay’s family with their search, with donations on the page now exceeding £50,000.
Jay’s friend Brad has strongly denied the rumours, saying: “We are not drug mules.” The trio, including Jay and Lucy, travelled to the island for a three-day NRG music festival.
Brad took to Instagram to plead their innocence: “I can’t believe I was involved in anything. We’ve been friends for years, we went on our first holiday together and unfortunately this happened. We’re not drug mules or anything… People need to know the facts before they start talking nonsense online.”
Lucy, the last person known to have spoken to Jay before he disappeared on June 17, posted an emotional tribute, including a photo of them together, along with a crying emoji. The Airbnb where Jay was last seen was being rented by Ayub Qassim, a convicted drug dealer.
Qassim said: “I let this old man stay at mine because he had nowhere else to go. All his friends had left him. I know Jay through my friends, I’m not going to bring someone back to mine if I don’t know them. I’m doing a favor for the old man and now my face is on the news. It’s a bit crazy. I didn’t even do anything.”
Qassim also said: “The only comment I can make is that Jay came home alive and left home alive.”
Despite the intense efforts of Spanish authorities, the 14-day search was completed last weekend.