Friends of Missing Teen Jay Slater Call for British Police Assistance

Friends of teenager Jay Slater, who has been missing in Tenerife since Monday, is urging British police to assist in the search as it enters its fifth day. The 19-year-old from Lancashire disappeared after telling a friend he would walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus following a night out.

Lucy Law, a friend of Jay’s, expressed her fears to the BBC, saying she believed he was in “severe danger.” She highlighted his vulnerability, stating, “He’s got shorts and t-shirt on, he’s got no suncream, he’s got no water, he’s got no coat. He’s not prepared for any of the weather up here. It’s not safe.”

Law also called for British police involvement to help find Jay and bring him back to his family. She told the Mirror, “We need British police here. I just want to find my mate. He’s been missing five days. It’s not looking good now. We feel as though it’s down to us to find him and that we’re doing more than the police.”

Law recounted that Jay had called her around 8:30 am on Monday, saying he was “lost in the mountains, he wasn’t aware of his surroundings, he desperately needed a drink and his phone was on 1%.” She added that he had “cut his leg on a cactus and had no idea where he was.”

Jay had gone to stay with people he met on Sunday night, who were staying in an apartment “miles away from civilization and in a very secluded location.” The 40 km (25-mile) journey from a nature reserve in the north of the island to his apartment in Los Cristianos should have taken 11 hours on foot.

A family friend told The Guardian, “Even if they had 30,000 people here it’s like a needle in a haystack,” reflecting on the difficulty of the search efforts. Lucy added, “I just think they need to get as much help as they can out here. There are no helicopters here [now]. He’s been missing for that long now, what are they actually doing?”

Jay’s mother, Debbie Duncan, flew to Tenerife on Tuesday morning to aid in the search. She expressed her fears to ITV News, saying she believed her son had “been taken against his will” but that the situation was in “the hands of the police.” She described the ordeal as an “absolute living nightmare,” pleading, “I just want my baby back. Please just anybody who can help – look for him. It’s a massive area up there. He’s out there somewhere or somebody knows where he is.”

Ms. Duncan also reflected on her regret for encouraging Jay’s trip, saying, “I wish I hadn’t encouraged him to go to this. I should have said, ‘Don’t go to Tenerife.’” She described Jay, an apprentice bricklayer, as a “good-looking” and “popular boy” who was a “great person who everyone wanted to be with.”

A Civil Guard spokeswoman told the i, “We are searching on the ground again this morning in the same area as yesterday. We do not discount any possibility.” The search continues as friends and family hope for Jay’s safe return.