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JAY Slater’s heartbroken family are set to this week press cops to reveal which theories they are probing.
The 19-year-old vanished without a trace in a remote part of Tenerife four weeks ago.
Doug Seeburg
Jay with his mum Debbie Duncan and older brother Zak Slater
Jay’s dad Warren Slater has called for more help to be flown out for the search
Jay’s dad Warren and his brother Zak have been out in Tenerife searching for weeksDoug SeeburgSpanish cops on the island ditched the search after less than two weeks, but are continuing to investigate his disappearance.
It’s understood detectives are looking at several lines of inquiry as Jay’s desperate family wait for answers.
Now The Sun can reveal Jay’s loved ones are hoping to “get clarity” on what theories are being probed – and which are just speculation.
The source said: “Jay’s family are hoping to speak to officers to get an update on where they are, and how the investigation is progressing.
“They’re yet to hear back on when the meeting might be, but they’d like to have it ASAP.
“Communications with the police haven’t been held as often as Jay’s family would like, and more regular updates would be welcomed.
“But they do remain eternally grateful for all they are doing in trying to find their son. “They know they are working hard to try and do all they can.
“But there’s a lot of speculation out there – especially on social media – so Jay’s family are just keen to try and establish what the facts are and what new information the police might have.”
Jay, 19, was last seen on June 17 walking uphill in the remote village of Tenerife
Ian Whittaker
Jay’s family – including mum Debbie Duncan, dad Warren Slater and brother Zak – are also looking to find out what information Mark Williams-Thomas handed to police.
The former Met detective late last week revealed he has passed on a “significant new piece of information” to Spanish police.
But he stopped short of sharing exactly what this bombshell new clue is.
The insider added: “They [Jay’s family] are especially keen to know whether the details Mark Williams-Thomas has passed on proved to be of use.
“They are hoping and praying Mark’s work might lead to the investigation going into a new phase and take them in a direction which leads to answers about what happened to Jay.”
Debbie, Warren and Zak remain in Tenerife and have vowed to stay until they know what happened to Jay after he disappeared on June 17.
The Sun last week revealed how they are looking for a more permanent base on the island to coordinate their efforts.
Jay’s devastated mum today told of the “heartache” the family are suffering as they mark four weeks since Jay vanished.
School finance officer Debbie, 55, said: “Jay is a typical young man who loves life with a bright future ahead of him.
“We are aware of the awful comments and conspiracy theories that are filling social media.
“These theories are hindering the people trying to help us in their investigation here in Tenerife and are vile to see as a family.
“He is a loving son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin and friend to so many. He is such a popular boy and this is very distressing for us all to read.”
Thousands of armchair detectives have taken it upon themselves try and crack the case as Spanish cops stay tight-lipped about their probe.
Many have been peddling wild conspiracy theories and far-fetched speculation.
He is a loving son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin and friend to so many. He is such a popular boy and this is very distressing for us all to read.
Debbie DuncanAmateur sleuths have tabled several theories – including that Jay could have been kidnapped, murdered or skipped the island on a yacht.
Apprentice bricklayer Jay, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancs, was last heard from on the morning on June 17.
He made a final frantic called to friend Lucy Law to say he was lost, needed water and only had one per cent phone battery.
Jay was walking through the remote, mountainous area of Masca, which he had travelled to with two men after a night of partying.
He has not been seen or heard from since and it remains a mystery what happened.
The teen’s desperate family are now hoping last night’s Euros final could trigger a key breakthrough in the hunt for their missing loved one.
Despite England’s heartbreaking defeat to Spain, pubs, bars and clubs in Tenerife were set to be crowded with thousands of tourists cheering on the Three Lions.
Locals were also expected to be out in force to watch Spain in and around the area Jay was last seen on June 17.
Businesses in the holiday hotspot predicted it could be the “busiest and wildest” weekend of the summer so far.
Now a source close to the search for Jay told The Sun they believe this could provide a much-needed opportunity to get new evidence in their hunt.
The insider said: “There will be more people out in Tenerife this weekend than there have been all summer.
“It will be heaving in the bars and clubs for the England game.
“And the volunteers involved in the search for Jay think it can present an opportunity to raise awareness of the work they are doing to try and find Jay.
“It’s a chance to underline how they are still desperately in need of information.
“They are particularly keen to reach locals who might not have been following the case that intently. Someone might have a clue or lead that would change everything.”
Meanwhile, a specialist search team is being jetted out to Tenerife from the Netherlands by Jay Slater’s family to hunt for the teen.
Distraught mum Debbie has announced part of the £52,000 donated through a GoFundMe page is being used to pay for the private search.
The family have now turned to the help of experts from the Netherlands who are flying to Tenerife with specialist dogs.
Debbie said: “As you all know the Guardia Civil gave up the land search after 12 days.
“We have been actively working with search and rescue teams and we can now confirm that we have a team of experts flying in over the weekend from the Netherlands, who will carry on the search with their specialist dogs.
“We are only able to fund this with the generosity of all those who donated.
“The team are the Signi Zoekhondon and this has taken lots of planning to get them over so thank you so much for your kindness.”
Reuters
Doug SeeburgThe mysterious case of Jay Slater, four weeks on
By Ellie Doughty, Foreign News Reporter
Monday July 15 marks four weeks since Jay Slater, a 19-year-old from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, vanished in Tenerife.
The apprentice bricklayer, who flew out to the popular holiday island for a rave festival with friends Lucy Law and Brad Page, has made headlines around the country.
On Sunday June 16 the three of them headed off to one of the events at Papagayo nightclub.
In the early hours of Monday 17 – Lucy and Brad were ready to head back to their hotel, but Jay wanted to keep partying.
It was then that he left the south of the island and headed to an Airbnb in the northwest with two British men.
The Sun revealed the identity of one of them – convicted drug dealer Ayub Qassim, who spent nine years behind bars in the UK.
For days it was thought that the second mystery man went by the name ‘Johnny Vegas’.
On Sunday former detective Mark Williams-Thomas, who is out in Tenerife investigating, said Qassim told him he is in fact the man behind the nickname ‘Johnny Vegas’.
We don’t yet know the identity of the second man – who remains a key part of the puzzle in Jay’s mysterious disappearance.
Qassim claims he drove Jay and the friend back to their accommodation and said they all went to sleep.
In the morning he offered to drive the teen back to the Los Cristianos resort after a nap, but Jay, hungry and tired, said he wanted to leave immediately.
Lucy, the last person to speak to Jay, claims she had a panicked call from him soon after he left the holiday let, telling her he was lost and thirsty, his phone was about to die and that he’d been cut by a cactus.
Jay had been seen by the owner of the Airbnb that morning wandering around near the Rural de Teno park – a mountainous region close-by.
He is believed to have been attempting the 11-hour trek back to his hotel, despite the alleged offer of a lift and more buses scheduled for the day.
It was there that his phone last pinged – and he hasn’t been seen or heard from since.
Mark Williams-Thomas has claimed he left the Airbnb quickly, and was “scared”.
Bizarrely, Qassim says he was woken up that morning by a phone call from an unnamed friend of Jay, saying he was “in a ditch” somewhere and had been “cut by a cactus”.
Jay’s friend Lucy claimed to have “tracked down” the two men in the Airbnb after he vanished – quizzing them on the morning of Jay’s disappearance.
Some reports have suggested Lucy knew the two men, although it is not clear how.
She has dubbed his disappearance “weird and suspicious”.
Both men were questioned by Spanish cops on June 17 but quickly deemed “irrelevant” to the investigation and cleared to fly back to the UK.
Police spent almost two weeks searching for Jay in the Tenerife mountains, scouring a 2,000ft ravine, before calling it off on Sunday June 30.
Jay’s family have repeatedly slammed the Spanish investigation into his bizarre disappearance.
His uncle, Glen Duncan, is convinced of “third party involvement”.
And the teen’s devastated dad, Warren Slater, says “everything stinks”
He told The Sun: “My starting position, I’ve said this from day one, ask the two men who’ve taken him – and then start from there.”
A number of unanswered questions remain, over why Jay would have travelled so far with two older men he didn’t know, why said men would have taken him in, and why he braved the Tenerife mountains with no phone battery, water or heat protection for a day-long walk.
English (US)