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THE body found in a mountainous area of Tenerife is Jay Slater’s, a post mortem has confirmed.
Authorities today said they have ID’d the body by fingerprints today.
Jay’s ‘devastated’ mum Debbie Duncan is demanding answers to why her son was not found sooner[/caption] Spanish police found Jay’s body on Monday[/caption] The teen’s parents now face an agonising wait to find out the official cause of death[/caption]His death was caused by “trauma consistent with a fall in a rocky area”, the Canary Islands High Court of Justice said.
Spanish police yesterday found 19-year-old Jay’s body in Masca after 29 days.
Apprentice bricklayer Jay, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancs, vanished in the area on June 17 after leaving an Airbnb he went to with two men.
Officials say the body recovered was “very deteriorated” and documentation found with it were Jay’s.
His devastated mum Debbie Duncan today said she wanted to see her beloved son one more time.
Distraught Debbie, 55, and dad Warren Slater, 58, jetted to the island and have been battling for answers.
They got the news they were dreading on Monday when Spanish police revealed a body had been located.
A family spokesman told The Sun: “Formal identification of Jay’s body will be done using a DNA sample provided by the family to the Spanish Guardia Civil during the early stages of the search.
“There should be no need for the family to have to perform a formal identification.
“Debbie has said she wants to see him one last time.
“Obviously that’s a personal voice but given he’s been there the best part of a month in those conditions, I’m not sure that’s a memory she will want.”
Arrangements are being made to repatriate the body to the UK where a second post-mortem is likely to be carried out by a Home Office pathologist.
TIMELINE OF THE TRAGEDY
THE grim discovery of a body comes after weeks of agony for Jay’s friends and family. Here is how the events unfolded:
Sunday, June 16: Jay and his friends party at the last day of NRG music festival being held at Papagayo night club in Playa de la Americas, Tenerife.
June 17 3-6am: Jay leaves with Ayub Qassim and another man for a £40-a-night Airbnb 23 miles away in the village of Masca.
7.30am: Jay shares a photo on Snapchat standing at doorway of the Airbnb.
8.50am: He calls pal Lucy Mae Law and says he is “lost in the middle of nowhere” with no water, a cut to his leg and one per cent on his phone.
Tuesday, June 18: Pals search area but no sign of Jay. Local cops and mountain rescue teams start official search. Jay’s mother Debbie Duncan flies to Tenerife.
June 19-20: Spanish police deploy drones, dogs and a helicopter, but find no trace. Search moves to Los Cristianos amid possible sighting, but it is ruled out and they return to Rural de Teno, near Masca.
June 21: Lancashire Police offer support but it is declined.
June 22: Mum Debbie issues emotional appeal to Jay saying “We just need you home.”
June 24: Claims of Jay sighting in Santiago del Teide — near to where he disappeared — and family believe a grainy CCTV image could be of him.
June 25: Debbie issues plea for her son to come home as more friends fly out and TV investigator Mark Williams- Thomas joins search.
June 29: Cops rule Mr Qassim, and other man at Airbnb, out of investigation.
June 30: Spanish cops officially suspend hunt but say probe “remains open”. His family continue to search.
Yesterday: A body is found by helicopter search team close to where his phone last pinged. His possessions are discovered next to human remains. Spanish cops say it points to an “accidental fall”.
More to follow… For the latest news on this story keep checking back at The Sun Online
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