MADRID. Spanish rescuers on the island of Tenerife have discovered human remains believed to be those of missing British teenager Jay Slater, who vanished nearly a month ago. The Guardia Civil police force announced on Monday that evidence strongly suggests the remains are his, though an autopsy will be required to confirm the identity and cause of death.
The remains were found in a challenging mountainous region where Slater, 19, was last traced. It is suspected that he may have died due to a fall in this difficult-to-access area. “The body was found on Monday morning by a Civil Guard mountain rescue group,” said a police spokesperson. “The family has been notified, and an autopsy will take place shortly. The case will then be transferred to a Tenerife court to determine the cause of death.”
Jay Slater went missing on June 17, with his phone last traced to the Masca ravine in a remote national park on the Canary Islands archipelago. Despite an extensive search involving dozens of officers, rescue workers, and volunteers using dogs, drones, and helicopters, Spanish police announced on June 30 that they had ended the search. However, Guardia Civil officers continued a “continuous and discrete search” for the entire 29 days.
British overseas missing persons charity LBT Global, which has issued several statements on behalf of the Slater family, confirmed in an email that the body found “looks to be that of Jay Slater.” The remains were discovered with Slater’s possessions and clothes, close to the last known location of his mobile phone.
Slater’s mother, Debbie, had expressed the family’s desperation in a statement on July 13, revealing that they had arranged for a team of experts with specialist dogs to fly in from the Netherlands over the weekend. “Jay is just a normal hardworking young lad from Lancashire who is very loved by all who know him,” she wrote, asking people to pray for him and his family.
The discovery brings a tragic end to the search for Jay Slater, highlighting the dangers of the rugged terrain in the remote parts of Tenerife. An official investigation will now proceed to determine the exact circumstances of his death.
Carlo Juancho FuntanillaFrontend Developer, WordPress, Shopify
Contributing Editor
AMA ACLC San Pablo
