Jay Slater latest: Search for missing teen called off by police in Tenerife

The search for missing British teenager Jay Slater has been called off nearly two weeks after he disappeared in a remote part of Tenerife.

As the gruelling search entered its thirteenth day, Spanish police said the probe for the 19-year-old from Lancashire had ended with the case remaining open.

The 19-year-old vanished nearly two weeks ago near Buenavista del Norte, Tenerife, after travelling there with two men he had met at a festival around 27 miles further south on the island.

Located in a steep valley in the beautiful Rural de Teno park, the remote village of Masca is a heaven for hikers and adventurers travelling to Tenerife.

Yet for the family and friends of Jay Slater, it has become the place of nightmares because its rugged landscape and steep ravines easily hide clues which could shed light on the teenager’s disappearance.

Having seen the search first-hand, it is understandable how such little progress has been made in 12 days. The young Briton’s phone was last located near a stretch of road by the Mirador La Cruz de Hilda cafe, with cacti and dense shrubbery on either side, making it slow work for helicopters, drones and sniffer dogs to comb through the area.

The Independent’s Holly Evans reports from Tenerife:

Jay Slater’s father Warren Slater revealed he was “disappointed” that just six volunteers turned out to join the hunt for his son after police issued an appeal for help.

Warren Slater, 58, and his son Zak, 24 arrived in Tenerife on Saturday to speak with search teams who had combed the rugged terrain above the village of Masca amid a plea for extra help from the public.

He said: “It’s a bit disappointing that there are no British apart from Paul but I suppose to them he’s just a British lad who’s come out here and got drunk.”