5 bombshells from Jay Slater inquest including 'fuming' voicenote and 'knives' claim
An inquest into the death of Jay Slater has resumed more than a year after the teenager fell to his death in a remote ravine in Tenerife.
The 19-year-old from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, vanished on June 17, 2024 after attending the NRG music festival with friends on the Spanish island. His remains were discovered nearly a month later in steep, rocky terrain near the remote village of Masca following a major search. The inquest started earlier this year but was paused, leaving key questions unanswered as Jay's mum Debbie Duncan urged key witnesses to come forward after they failed to show.
With the evidence due to be summarised this week, the Mirror has outlined the most damning bombshells from today's hearing.
Key witnesses fail to show again
Coroner's officer Alice Swarbrick said exhaustive efforts were made to secure evidence from key witnesses who are yet to come forward. Steven 'Rocky' Roccas, who stayed at an Airbnb with Jay before he vanished, could not be located to attend today's hearing. Brandon Hodgson, a mutual friend of Ayub Qassim - a fellow Brit who was one of the last people to see him alive - also failed to show.
According to Lois Norris, a barrister representing Jay's family, Brandon appeared 'unwilling to give evidence' in a prior message thread. Brandon, who is understood to be in Tenerife, was repeatedly served a summons at his Lancashire home by police. Multiple calls and voicemails went unanswered, and even after his mother, Natalie Hodgson, received a letter in person. Neither she nor Brandon responded further.
Steven 'Rocky' Roccas was contacted by Coroner's officer Alice Swarbrick on April 17 to provide a statement via email, but he soon stopped returning calls. Ms Swarbrick arranged visits by police officers at several London addresses, checked the Police National Computer, and checked voting records, but could not locate him.
Jay and pals may have taken things 'a bit too far'
Jay's friends admitted they may have taken things 'a bit too far' while partying on their first lads holiday. When asked about Jay's behaviour during the trip, his pal Brad said: 'Well it was our first holiday as a boys' holiday so we might have took it a bit too far.'
Brad revealed that on the night of June 16, Jay consumed ecstasy and cocaine, and also took ketamine at some point during the holiday, though he was uncertain if it was that particular night.
He rated Jay's level of drunkenness at a six on a ten-point scale, describing him as 'giddy.' He said he and Jay were 'both just having a laugh with each other.'
'Fuming' voicenote sent to Jay before he vanished
In the frantic moments on the night before Jay's disappearance, pal Lucy Law said she was struggling to locate him after he had gone to the toilet while at the NRG music festival. She said: 'We all split up to try and find him in the place but then none of us could find him in there so at this point our phones were nearly dead and he was still not answering his phone.'
The group then scoured the strip, with Lucy assuming he'd made friends or even found a girl to hang out with, as Jay was a 'social butterfly.' Soon, he messaged saying 'I'm in Oasis,' and later mentioned being in Sugar Reef - located two or three clubs up - yet Lucy still couldn't find him. She then left him an angry voicemail saying: 'Where are you and what are you doing? I am coming down to get you. If you're not there this time I will be f**** fuming.'
Eventually, when Lucy found him, Jay casually said he wasn't ready to head home. 'There's no way I'm going home,' he told her. Ayub Qassim, a fellow Brit but not a hometown friend, later invited Jay to return to his rented Airbnb in the Tenerife mountain village of Masca.
Ayub Qassim scolded during inquest hearing
Ayub Qassim, who is believed to have been the last person to see the Lancashire teen alive, offered his condolences to Jay's family during the inquest - but was scolded after he shifted the conversation by mentioning 'kids dying in Palestine.'
He said: "First and foremost I want to send my condolences to Jay's family. I want people to also think about the kids that are dying…' At which point he was told by the coroner: 'You are not here to make political statements.'
On the night before Jay vanished, Ayub said he partied with Jay until "5am pushing 6am maybe." Jay was "on the buzz," according to Ayub. 'Head bopping, chilled, happy. He was coherent.' He then offered to drop Jay home. Ayub said he told Jay: "Bearing in mind I live a bit far away but I'll drop you off in the morning if you want."
Jay decided to catch a bus back to his apartment after being advised by a local that one would be arriving in 10 minutes.
Pals deny speculation about knives and stolen watch
During the inquest, Jay's pals dismissed circulating rumors that he had stolen a watch and carried knives in his shorts. They said that they had no knowledge of any watch being taken, despite a Snapchat in which Jay supposedly boasted about taking an AP watch he was planning to sell.
Ayub said: 'When you're younger you might exaggerate things. But one hundred per cent I didn't see a watch getting taken, maybe he was just bigging himself up to his pals.' Lucy also said she had no recollection of any watch on the night, and that Jay had never mentioned one to her.
Addressing a separate rumour about Jay carrying two kitchen knives in his shorts, Brad was asked if this would be unusual. He answered 'yes,' adding nothing indicated Jay was ever distressed, scared, or agitated.
Factors which contributed to Jay's death revealed
The mountain rescue team said there were several factors that led to Jay's tragic fall. They attributed his death to his lack of experience in mountainous terrain, recklessness, diminished physical fitness, and an overall absence of self-control alongside insufficient equipment for the conditions.
Adverse weather conditions and the inherent risk posed by loose, falling rocks were also mentioned as key elements that may have contributed to Jay's fall.
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