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4 months ago
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THE search for Jay Slater has entered its 13th day – with investigators still scouring the Tenerife mountains for any trace of the Brit teen.
But new police updates, mystery phone calls and fresh “leads” have thrown up more questions than answers in the teen’s mysterious disappearance.
MEN Media
Reuters
Doug Seeburg
Missing Rolex after ‘scuffle’
Cops reportedly launched a new probe on Saturday morning over the theft of a Rolex watch just hours before Jay disappeared.
Taxi drivers and bar staff who were working near the Papagayo Beach Club on June 17 are set to be questioned by investigators after a fight reportedly erupted on the Tenerife strip.
Jay was seen partying in the busy venue shortly before it closed as he vanished just hours afterwards.
An Eastern European man involved in the scrap allegedly had his pricey Rolex stolen, according to the Daily Mail.
It is unclear exactly how Jay’s disappearance might be linked to the incident – but officers are reportedly examining CCTV footage from the security cameras.
And now cops are hoping to speak to new witnesses who might have seen the fight unfold – and have information about Jay.
A source in Tenerife told The Sun: “Any lead right now which could throw up information as to where Jay is will be looked at.
“The scene in and around that club is always an incredibly busy one.
“There are likely to have been many hundreds of people coming and going so it’s possible if CCTV doesn’t throw up leads, that witnesses might.
“There are a lot of taxi drivers, bar owners and club staff in that area who might remember something important.”
One of Jay’s pals who has flown to Tenerife to help in the search told detectives the alleged theft may have led to the Lancashire lad wandering off on his own to try and find the watch.
Police update on disappearing duo
Two mystery Brits who partied with Jay Slater on the night of his disappearance were labelled “not relevant” by investigators today.
The latest twist comes just days after a private investigator called the men “key witnesses” in the case.
Investigator Mark Williams-Thomas said the men stayed with Jay at an Airbnb cottage in Tenerife before he vanished.
The men were only briefly asked to speak with cops before being allowed to fly home.
Neither men have been spoken to since, claims Mark.
This has resulted in questions over why the pair haven’t been asked to help out further in the investigations as time runs out.
Ian Whittaker
PA
Ian WhittakerCipriano Martin, head of the Civil Guard’s Greim mountain rescue unit, was asked about the two mystery men who partied with the teen on the night he vanished.
Mr Martin claimed the pair have no relevance to Jay’s disappearance.
He said: “We’re mountain specialists and we’re in charge of searching here, and it’s the Civil Guard investigators who have been responsible for the investigation.
“Those men have been spoken to and they don’t have any relevance whatsoever for the case.”
But, former detective Mark – who worked on the Madeleine McCann case – claims to have pieced together the mystery and feels the duo could help out.
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”.
Those men have been spoken to and they don’t have any relevance whatsoever for the case
Cipriano MartinNeither of them are believed to have been to the NRG music festival where Jay spent the day partying before he vanished.
“The family are desperate for these men to come forward as witnesses. They are not currently assisting,” Mark added.
“The group sat outside on the wall outside the club after the night ended. Witnesses say he seemed quite in control of himself.
“What we don’t know is why he went with them.”
Just six volunteers for ‘massive’ search
Earlier today, 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.
It is understood Jay’s father Warren and older brother Zak went to the search site today.
Despite cops issuing a huge appeal for expert volunteers its not known why the call for help wasn’t answered by more people.
The Civil Guard confirmed plans to retrace his last known steps, beginning at the village of Masca over the weekend.
Doug Seeburg
Reuters
Doug SeeburgCipriano Martin, head of the Civil Guard’s Greim mountain rescue unit, said: “The operation is going to consist of a search with the people that have come here today, in a thorough manner.
“At the height we are, we need to progress by ruling out areas and make sure that the areas we search, with the work we have done this week, are looked at well and can be ruled out.
“And of course that’s going to be done based on the information we have, and that information of his last-known position and the conversations he had the day he disappeared.”
Several police vehicles from the Guardia Civil mountain division, Bomberos and AEA arrived at the top of the mountains this morning alongside the small number of volunteers.
Paul was left shocked by the turn out, he said: “I thought today was going to be so productive. I thought so many people were going to show up.
“I thought it was going to be really organised and I thought it was going to get out, not start the search when the hottest point of the day is.
“I just thought it was going to be massive and its not.”
It comes as the next 48 hours have been dubbed “make or break” in the search for Jay.
A source told The Sun: “There’s a feeling that this weekend is going to be absolutely key. A huge amount of resources and effort is being piled into the next 48 hours.
“It’s not all or nothing, but investigators dearly hope this weekend will provide the breakthrough they are hoping for.”
Mystery final phone calls
The last person Jay spoke to is believed to have been his pal Lucy Law over the phone.
The 18-year-old 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.
Missing person posters have been put up in Tenerife
Lucy was the last person to have spoken to Jay on the phoneFacebook
Jay’s best friend Brad is ‘not coping’ with his disappearance after saying he heard Jay ‘slipErotemeThe phone call resulted in several leads being discovered – including his final known location.
The fact he was pricked by a cactus would also suggest he wouldn’t have been walking along a main road at that time.
Many unanswered questions have sparked from it.
One of the biggest was around why he would attempt to walk the treacherous 11 hour trip home rather than waiting for a bus or going back to the Airbnb.
Lucy told reporters she found Jay’s disappearance “weird and suspicious”.
Brad Hargreaves was also on holiday with Jay when he vanished.
He has spoke out on how he is “not coping” with his best mate being missing as he has stayed out in Tenerfie with his mum since June 17.
Pinging phone
The last person Jay had contact with was pal Lucy Law, who partied with him and his friend Brad Hargreaves after they flew out to the island on holiday.
They had been at the NRG festival and Lucy went home before 3am.
Jay stayed out before travelling 45 minutes in a hire car with two men he had just met 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. It appeared to show him holding a cigarette and walking down some stone steps.
After his phone call with Lucy, the mobile went dead at 8.50am near a hiking trail in the park.
Search teams narrowed their efforts to a small group of buildings close to where Jay’s phone last pinged, but found nothing last week.
Kidnap claims
Within hours of arriving in Tenerife, Debbie was sent a Snapchat message which convinced her Jay might have been abducted.
It read: “Kiss goodbye to your boy, you’re never going to see him again, he owes me a lot of money.”
Debbie was left frightened by the threat saying: “I think he’s been taken against his will.”
Investigator Mark announced that he had helped Debbie send all of the threats and a number of other worrying online messages such as death hoaxes to the local cops.
It is unclear what has been done since with the police being focused on search operations at this moment in time.
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