Jay Slater – latest news: Mother gives GoFundMe update as teenager ‘spotted watching Euros’ after last contact

Paul Arnott, 29, who runs the TikTok account Down the Rapids is among those who has been searching for Jay Slater after he disappeared last Monday. Since being in Tenerife, he has posted 66 videos with each racking up hundreds of thousands of views.

His efforts have attracted the interest of the teenager’s family, who have reportedly contacted him and arranged a meeting on Thursday.

“I’m meeting the family today,” he told the Telegraph. “I’ve been speaking with Brad’s mum, Rachel. They wanted to bring me food but I said no.

“They said they wanted to meet me. They said they’re really proud of what I’m doing.”

The mother of Jay Slater’s best friend has told the BBC that a deluge of online trolling has added to their “living nightmare”.

Rachel Hargreaves, 34, who is in Tenerife with Mr Slater’s mother, Debbie Duncan, is the mother of Brad, who travelled to the Canary Islands with Mr Slater.

Ms Hargreaves, a chef from Accrington in Lancashire, said a troll even impersonated her late mother, who died eight months ago.

“The picture of my mum is an old one but it was on my Facebook and somehow they have got their hands on it,” she said.

“We’re living the worst nightmare you can live and this does not help. I’m a strong person and that affected me. Things don’t normally get to me.”

As the desperate search for missing British teenager Jay Slater continues, The Independent’s Holly Evans has travelled to Tenerife to bring readers the latest in the ongoing investigation.

The 19-year-old from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, disappeared in Tenerife over a week ago following an attempt to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus.

He had attended the NRG music festival on the island with two friends before his disappearance.

The location where Mr Slater’s phone pinged last Monday (17 June) is in an area of difficult terrain, with a narrow path and dramatic drops into the mountains.

Holly Evans reports live from Tenerife:

Located on Veronica’s Strip in Playa de Las Americas, the nightclub where Jay Slater spent his evening before going missing stands at the end of a long run of busy bars.

The majority of them open until 5am, they are currently inundated with British teenagers celebrating their A-Levels, with cheap drinks and package spirit deals available all down the street.

Drugs are easily accessible, with groups selling Class A, cannabis and balloons along the pavement.

Holly Evans reports from the scene in Tenerife:

Despite the interest among British press and tourists, Spanish locals appear to know very little about the disappearance. While Jay Slater’s photo has been plastered onto ATMs and bus stops, the Spanish police have made very few comments on the case and not much is known about the progression of the investigation.

While a group of British people from Manchester on holiday told The Independent last night that they had been checking the Facebook group chats daily, locals appear confused by the press attention.

Adela, a cafe worker in the tourist area of Los Cristianos, shook her head and simply said: “People always get lost in the mountains if they’re not careful, it just happens.”

Reports from last year tell of how Ryan Cooney, who was aged 28 at the time, was last seen leaving his hotel Paraiso del Sol apartments in Playa de las Americas on 9 November 2023.

The Independent’s Holly Evans reports from Tenerife:

Jay Slater’s last known movements have been mapped as the desperate search for the missing teenager entered its second week in Tenerife.

Police, sniffer dogs, firefighters and volunteers were among those who gathered again on Saturday to continue with the hunt as fears grow for the British teenager.

Jay Slater disappeared after attending the New Rave Generation music festival last Sunday evening in Papagayo Beach Club on the south of the island.

After making new acquaintances during the early hours of the morning, he travelled with two British men to a remote AirBnb, an 11-hour hike from his accommodation.

At around 8.15am last Monday, he contacted his friend Lucy Law and told her that he was lost, had injured his leg, was dehydrated and that his phone only had one per cent battery.

At 8.50am, his phone was last located near the Mirador La Cruz de Hilda cafe, a steep climb in the wrong direction from where an eyewitness had told him to head.

The Independent’s Holly Evans reports from Tenerife:

After unconfirmed reports that Jay Slater had been seen “watching the Euros” at a nearby town, The Independent travelled to Los Gigantes which sits at the foot of the mountains where the teenager has gone missing.

However, bar owners in the seaside town had little known knowledge, with sports bar owners stating that he had not been spotted in the vicinity.

“We’ve not seen him,” said the owner of Richardsons, a British sports bar in the town centre which is one of the only bars showing the football.

Jay Slater’s mother has announced she is withdrawing some of the money raised in the fundraiser that was launched to help find her missing son.

Debbie Duncan, 55, said the funds will go towards the search efforts in an update posted on the GoFundMe page on Thursday morning, as she vowed the teenager’s loved ones will not lose hope and will bring him home.

She wrote: “I would like to thank everyone for your support, kind messages, and good wishes. It’s difficult to wrap our heads around what is happening right now, but we are not losing hope that we will find Jay and return home together.

“We are currently working with GoFundMe to withdraw part of the funds, which are being safely held. I wanted to share that these funds will be used to support the mountain rescue teams who are tirelessly searching for Jay. Additionally, since our stay in Tenerife needs to be extended, we will also use the funds to cover accommodation and food expenses. I’m surrounded by wonderful people who are by my side, but far from their loved ones, so we’ll also be using part of these funds to fly them to Tenerife so we can support each other during these dark times.

“Thank you again for all your donations and support, this means the world to us.”