Jay Slater’s family says ‘worst fears realised’ after body found in Tenerife – latest

Jay Slater’s family have taken “very small comfort” in their belief that he died instantly after falling from a significant height, a charity chief who has been speaking with his mother has said.

Matthew Searle, chief executive of LBT Global, told The Independent he had been speaking with Debbie Duncan, 55, at length after Spanish authorities concluded her son’s injuries were consistent with an accidental fall.

Mr Searle, whose charity has been supporting Mr Slater’s family during this ordeal, said they had looked closely at the area where the rescue teams were searching when they found the 19-year-old’s body.

“Chances are if he did fall from a height where we saw the recovery teams then it’s very unlikely he would have known much about it,” said the charity CEO. “That takes away the horrible nightmare idea that he fell and was waiting for help that never came. It’s very small comfort, but it is some.”

Tenerife’s civil guard insists it had continued its search discreetly, despite having publicly called off the search over two weeks ago.

After 13 days of searching, the Spanish authorities called off the search on June 30, but said they were continuing their investigation.

However upon recovering Jay Slater’s body on Monday, they revealed they had indeed continued an “incessant and discreet” search in which the “natural space was preserved so that it would not be filled with curious onlookers”.

Jay Slater’s phone was last located near a stretch of road by the Mirador La Cruz de Hilda, a cafe near the village of Masca with cacti and dense shrubbery on either side, which had made it slow work for helicopters, drones and sniffer dogs to comb through the area.

The body discovered on Monday morning was found by Civil Guard mountain rescue specialists in a “very inaccessible” area, officials said.

Here is a timeline of the key events prior to Jay Slater’s disappearance and leading up to the discovery of his body:

Jay Slater’s body should be repatriated to the UK in the coming days, according to a charity supporting his family.

Matthew Searle, chief executive of LBT Global, told The Independent his charity and Mr Slater’s family are “working closely” with Spanish authorities following the autopsy results.

He said: “As the coroner hasn’t found any indication of criminal activity, the body will be released soon and repatriated to the UK. We would expect that to happen in the coming days.”

A TikToker who answered family pleas to join the hunt for Jay Slater in Tenerife is puzzled by the discovery of his body in an area he believed had been searched thoroughly.

Londoner Callum Fahim scoured the rocky ravines of the Spanish island with a search party just days after the apprentice bricklayer vanished outside a remote Airbnb in Masca.

Mr Fahim spoke to The Independent shortly after a Spanish court said autopsy fingerprinting confirmed the body belongs to the teenager, and said he feared he may have walked past the body “five or six times”.

Matthew Searle MBE, head of the charity LBT Global, was talking to Jay Slater’s mother Debbie Duncan at the time the news of the autopsy confirmation broke, and she and Jay’s family were devastated at the news, the charity said

Ms Duncan said: “I just can’t believe it – we’re here with the Embassy staff waiting for an update and now it’s come – the worst news”.

A family source told The Sun that Jay’s mother Debbie Duncan was completely devastated, saying: “It’s the news they’ve all been dreading. She has a lot of questions which she hopes will be answered in the coming days.

“It hasn’t completely sunk in yet. The hardest thing for her is to hear he was found so close to the original search site. It’s hard to take. It means it’s entirely possible they have walked past his body whilst searching for him.

“It seems incredible so many people walked that area and yet he was so close. As we have seen with mountainous terrain and ravines, it does happen — no matter how hard that is to believe.”

Dozens of balloons have been released in Jay Slater’s hometown as those who knew him held an emotional vigil in memory of the teenager.

Tearful locals comforted each other in Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, on the day authorities in Tenerife confirmed they had found his body in the Rural de Teno park.

While Jay’s mother, Debbie Duncan, and father, Warren Slater, are still on the island as four weeks of gruelling searching come to a close, loved ones in the UK paid tribute.

Jay’s football coach, Pam Kierons, laid flowers in memory of the apprentice bricklayer and told The Mirror: “I’m devastated for the family, devastated for Debbie. The outcome is not what anyone wanted, but at least they can bring his body home.

“It’s disgusting that people have dug into past issues and come up with crazy conspiracy theories. Sadly the most likely thing to have happened has happened.”

Reverend Matt Smith told the paper: “Our thoughts and our prayers are with them. We’re here and supporting them for when they need us.”

Blue ribbons were tied to trees and lamp posts across the area as dozens of blue balloons were released.