Jay Slater missing – latest: Body found with British teenager’s clothes

In a statement issued on Sunday, Matthew Searle, chief executive of LBT Global, the charity supporting jay Slater’s family, had said: “What people are losing sight of here is that this is somebody’s son, somebody’s loved one, and he is missing.

“Whatever happened to him, its important to consider how the family will feel when horrific things are being posted online, and even sent directly to family and friends. What is important is to locate Jay, and the constant barrage of conspiracy theories and wild speculation simply delays that happening – it must end.

“If people do have any information, please send it via email to delta.ops@lbt.global. You can remain anonymous.”

Although Spanish police spoke to the two men who had taken him to the mountain area of Masca after he was reported missing, little is known about their background or why they were staying in such a remote area, my colleague Holly Evans reports.

At Papagayo’s nightclub, staff have clearly been told not to say anything in relation to the case. Snapchat images taken during the early hours of the morning on Sunday 16 June, showed Mr Slater partying with friends.

Mr Slater was last seen “walking away fast” from the remote village of Buenavista del Norte after travelling there with two people he had met at a musical festival around 27 miles further south of the island on 17 June.

The apprentice bricklayer from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, was last seen by a cafe owner, who said the teenager had asked her about bus times before deciding not to wait two hours for a service.

The cafe owner said she saw Mr Slater walk out of the village, and his phone was last detected in the Rural de Teno National Park. He had earlier called friends to say he was lost and had 1 per cent battery left on his phone.

My colleague Alexander Butler has more details:

The body believed to potentially be that of Jay Slater was found close to the village of Masca, near the last known location of his mobile phone.

The body found in Tenerife was discovered with Jay Slater’s possessons and clothes, a charity supporting the family has said.

LBT Global said it was “saddened to announce that a body found in Tenerife does look to be that of Jay Slater”.

A statement said: “It is understood the body was found close to the site of his mobile phone’s last location.

“Although formal identification is yet to be carried out, the body was found with Mr Slater’s possessions and clothes. A post mortem and forensic enquiries will follow.

“LBT Global are supporting the family at this distressing time and ask for everyone to afford them space and privacy to come to terms with the news.”

A fresh team of volunteers had insisted “there is more we can do” to find Jay Slater as they set off on a flight to Tenerife on Sunday.

Netherlands-based non-profit Signi Zoekhonden has deployed a team of five people and four dogs to Tenerife on Sunday, a move which Jay’s mother Debbie Duncan said had taken “a lot of planning”.

Speaking as the team prepared to board a flight to Tenerife, volunteer Marieke Krans told the BBC: “We are very committed to come and we are confident in the dogs and in ourselves.

“Our dogs are trained to find people, both alive or dead, and have more skills. They can search underwater, and up mountains, whatever it may be. They are really creative and that means there is more we can do. We will go where the dogs lead us.”

The mother of Jay Slater had issued a new statement on Sunday, prior to the announcement of the discovery of human remains in the search for the British teenager.

In a statement issued on Sunday via the British overseas missing persons charity LBT Global, his mother Debbie Duncan criticised the “awful comments and conspiracy theories” on social media as “vile” and warned they were hindering efforts to find him.

Ms Duncan wrote: “As we approach four weeks of our beautiful Jay’s disappearance, we cannot put into words the heartache we are suffering as a family.

“Jay is a typical young man who loves life with a bright future ahead of him. This month will mark the end of his three year apprenticeship with the world at his feet. He is loved by everyone and has a close bond with his family and many many friends

“We would also like to say that 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 investigations 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 this and is very distressing for us all to read.”

Human remains have been found in the search for Jay Slater, local media in Tenerife has reported, nearly a month after the British 19-year-old went missing.

A body was found in the Masca area where he had disappeared, newspaper El Dia reported, citing the Spanish Civil Guard.

DNA tests will be carried out to establish the person’s identity, along with an autopsy to uncover the cause of their death.

Following the arrival back home of one of missing Jay Slater’s best friends, Lucy Law, she’s now posted previously unseen pictures of the 19-year-old.

Ms Law was part of the search effort to find Jay, who vanished on 17 June.

The teenager spoke to Ms Law on the phone on the morning, saying he was walking home and he had just one per cent left on his battery.

And now she’s shared some new pictures on Instagram showing Jay with friends.