Search teams continue to comb the Rural Park of Teno and the municipality of Buenavista del Norte with the aim of finding Jay Slater. The young Briton has been missing for a week since he left Las Verónicas towards the northwest area of the island. Several videos of his last party have been flooding social media, but none provide a clue of his whereabouts.
The last contact with him was on June 17 when he messaged his friend to say he had lost his phone battery and would walk to his apartment. He never completed the ten-hour journey between the two points, but it’s unknown where he ended up.
Jay Slater has a dark mark in his history. The Briton, whose mother said it was his first vacation with friends, was part of a group of eight people who beat up a 17-year-old, Tom Hilton.
According to various British tabloids, the attack took place last August 2021, and the eight young people used machetes, an axe, and a golf club. The injuries were severe, exposing the skull and causing wounds on the shoulders and legs. All this happened in Rishton, a place where youngsters used to throw parties or hang out.
Jay Slater was 16 years old and was part of the group that assaulted Hilton. Along with him were Danny Yakub, Connor Armstrong, James Meagre, Davis Hargreaves, Kane Taylor and two other minors. All of them were sentenced to six months of community service, avoiding juvenile detention.
It is noted that the youngsters showed “arrogance” during the trial, but their lawyer managed to convince the judge that they would have the opportunity to rehabilitate and become useful members of society again. The judge himself admitted that if they had been found guilty of the most serious charge of injury, they would have been sent to juvenile custody, but he opted for rehabilitation. The sentence was for violent disorder and other offences including witness intimidation, attempted robbery, and conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
The search expands to other areas of the island
According to several British media, the latest reports suggest he has been seen in Santiago del Teide. The search has now extended to other areas of Buenavista del Norte, beyond Masca ravine. This is where his phone was last located before running out of battery.
Officers on foot, a helicopter, and drones are searching for Slater, who has gone a week without any information on his whereabouts. His mother is in Tenerife and even the UK Foreign Secretary has contacted various authorities on the island in an effort to locate the young Briton.
