Human remains have been discovered in Tenerife believed to belong to Brit teenager Jay Slater, who has been missing for a month. With many questions about Jay’s disappearance still to be answered, Spanish police announced that an autopsy is likely to take place today, Tuesday July 16.
Two weeks into the hunt for the missing teenager, with no confirmed sightings of the 19 year old since June 17, investigators shifted their focus to an alleged ‘stolen Rolex’ they hoped could provide crucial clues. The apprentice bricklayer from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, is known to have left a music festival in the early hours of June 17, getting into a car with two British men who then took him to an Airbnb in the rural village of Masca.
Jay disappeared around 8:50am as he tried to return to his friends in the tourist hotspot of Los Cristianos. However, it later emerged that police were investigating a new lead related to the mysterious disappearance.
READ MORE:Jay Slater’s family issue statement after body found in search for missing Tenerife teen
Officers were reportedly examining claims of a nightclub brawl over a stolen Rolex in the hours before Jay went missing. Here’s everything we know about the alleged stolen watch, which has taken a significant role in the investigation.
Jay mentioned ‘stolen’ £12,000 Rolex on Snapchat
TV detective Mark Williams-Thomas has provided fresh insight into Jay’s state of mind before he disappeared. The former policeman, who has worked on several high-profile cases including the disappearance of Nicola Bulley, claimed that during Jay’s journey to the Airbnb, he posted a video on Snapchat flaunting the theft of a Rolex watch.
In a video statement shared on social media, Mr Williams-Thomas stated: “On route Jay posted a Snapchat saying that they had taken a £12,000 Rolex from a person. We have been unable to validate this in terms of a reported theft. However, friends of Jay said he would not make this up and the watch was the subject of a later conversation between them.”
A ‘fight broke out’ at the nightclub
Earlier reports suggest that police were investigating claims of a nightclub brawl over the stolen Rolex in the hours leading up to Jay’s disappearance. It was alleged that a fight broke out outside Papagayo Beach Club – where Jay was seen partying – involving a man who claimed his Rolex watch had been nicked, reports the Mirror.
Shortly after, Tenerife Police were reportedly looking into a new lead connected to Jay’s disappearance. At the time, it wasn’t clear how this incident could be linked to Jay’s case, but one mate suggested he might’ve gone to search for the watch.
Following these allegations, police reportedly focused their investigation on CCTV and security camera footage of where the supposed brawl occurred, as per MailOnline.
Jay was ‘scared’ leaving Masca Airbnb
Detective Mark Williams-Thomas claimed that Jay was frightened when he left the holiday rental where he was last spotted. He suggested that the teen couldn’t return to the property for some reason, despite this being the most “sensible course of action.” It remains unclear where the alleged stolen Rolex was at this point.
Mr Williams-Thomas, who took a flight to Tenerife in search of Jay, stated: “We have received information that would suggest Jay left the rental property feeling scared and that he would not return to the rental, even though that would have been the most sensible course of action, and also where he could have charged his phone and got water.”
The former officer also dismissed the possibility that Jay had been kidnapped, an idea previously put forth by his mother Debbie, stating: “no credible ransom demand has been made”. He further added: “We have no evidence at this stage to say there was any third-party criminal involvement in Jay’s disappearance. However, there are still a number of outstanding actions and therefore we still remain open minded to the possibility of this changing.”
He continued: “The evidence strongly supports that Jay walked off and was walking for at least 30 minutes off the road on a track before he last had contact with friends, with a very accurate location pin drop at 8.50am.”
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