Jay Slater's father says 'it doesn't make sense' amid search for missing son

Warren Slater, the father of missing teenager Jay Slater, has expressed confusion and distress over his son's disappearance, stating that it "doesn't make any sense" for him to have ventured alone into the Tenerife mountains.

The 19-year-old, from Oswaldtwistle, was last seen last Monday morning, June 17. After attending the NRG music festival, he reportedly wandered away from a remote Airbnb rental accommodation positioned north of Masca village, where he had stayed overnight with two people he met there.

Yesterday (Sunday, June 23), while putting up missing person flyers in Santiago del Teide village, Warren Slater shared his concerns with the Manchester Evening News: "You think, has somebody got him? Because no matter if you were drunk or whatever, you don't go off that road up there."

He further emphasized the unlikeliness of anyone choosing to leave the main route, pointing out, "And there are people up there... you don't go along that road for more than 20 minutes without somebody stopping you or passing you."

Reflecting on his own visit to the location where his son was last spotted, he revealed, "I knew right from when I went up there that he wouldn't have gone [off that road]. He isn't stupid. When I saw the police I asked them, seriously, 'would you go off that road? ' and I think it woke them up a bit.", reports the Liverpool Echo.

Warren Slater is questioning the initial assumptions about his son's fate, saying, "It started out as it being a lad who had gone walking and got lost, or that he may have fallen. But it doesn't make sense. Nobody would walk off that road. Why would he have gone uphill? ".

Highlighting the dangers of the area, he added, "It's dangerous; it's a massive mountain. It's not just a hill. It was only when I went up there myself [that I noticed]. People that go out to a party don't come up here."

Debbie, the mother of missing Jay, relayed to journalists that there was a sighting of an individual resembling her son near a church in Santiago del Teide, approximately 7km from where he was last seen in Masca. This sighting, reported around 6pm on Monday - a full ten hours after the last known contact with Jay - has not been officially confirmed by the Civil Guard.

Jay's loved ones have reportedly notified the authorities and are currently examining CCTV footage, sharing an image of someone they believe could be Jay.

The Civil Guard has yet to confirm to the MEN if this particular sighting is under investigation. Despite the indistinct nature of the photo, family friend Rachel Hargreaves expressed that the police are pursuing 'every lead'.

Rachel stated: "We have to take each lead and act on it. Having been up there [the mountain] ourselves, and after all the searching, we get the impression that he can't be there."

"We are six days in, but doing all we can to bring him home. This morning I told police where the CCTV cameras are around here. We aren't giving up."

"He's an intelligent boy; nearly a fully qualified bricklayer. He would've stood out like a sore thumb up there and somebody would've seen him.

"The search efforts are extensive, with foot patrols, drones, helicopters, and mountain rescue teams meticulously mapping the area. They've shown us detailed maps and the scope of their search areas."

A firefighter, who is part of the search team, expressed his concern to the Manchester Evening News, stating: "The days are passing by... but he still hasn't appeared."

The last known contact with Jay was on Monday morning (June 17), when his phone signal was detected in a mountainous ravine about half a mile north of Masca. Today marks the seventh day of intense searches involving drones, helicopters, fire crews, search dogs and mountain rescue teams.

This morning, the search efforts were concentrated around a small hut near where Jay's phone last sent a signal. Emergency services are currently combing a 30-kilometre area in an attempt to locate the 19 year old, focusing on three specific areas - the Masca Gorge, La Vica, and Las Portelas, as well as the wider Masca region.