Jay Slater's iPhone messages to friends and payment details revealed
After Jay's body was brought back to Lancashire and placed under the coroner's authority, an inquiry into his death commenced which featured a detailed analysis of Jay's iPhone 14 by Lancashire Constabulary. This evidence was presented in May when the inquest started, before hearings were adjourned to permit additional attempts to locate missing witnesses.
Detective Chief Inspector Rachel Higson carried out a forensic evaluation of Jay's device and produced a 16-page report outlining her findings.
DCI Higson's report reveals that Jay's iPhone 14 was examined on April 25. The report's overview states that "there is evidence of usage since the phone was returned from the Spanish authorities, this interaction with the device has resulted in data being overwritten".
The analysis of Jay's phone was limited to information between June 16 and June 18 and covered communication records, location information, health statistics and battery levels. Messages sent and received during this timeframe encompassed Snapchat, Facebook Messenger, iMessage, WhatsApp and conventional calls/text messages, reports the Manchester Evening News. Jay sent a map showing his location to friend Bradley Geoghegan (Image: HM Coroner) The message from Brandon Hodgson to Jay Slater
During the inquest into Jay's death, witnesses were quizzed on whether they knew that Jay had "run out of money". Ayub Qassim, one of the individuals who rented the Airbnb where Jay was last spotted, mentioned he "might have heard something" about Jay being skint but wasn't certain.
Jay's mobile showed two unsuccessful transactions at 9.10pm and 9.11pm on the eve of his vanishing. The failed payments, amounting to €320 and €160, were attempted with INFISEN INVERSIONES.
At 9.26pm, Brandon Hodgson pinged Jay a text saying: "Get that 2 ton out for me as well bro". A spreadsheet showing the decreasing battery life of Jay's phone
Later, Brandon fired off another message to Jay, pressing him to return and remarking that Jay was "off his barnet".
At 6.09am on Monday June 17, Jay sent a snap of his whereabouts to his friend Bradley Geoghegan. An hour later, at 7.08am, Jay posted a video on Snapchat showcasing the vicinity of the Airbnb in Masca, as reported by Lancs Live.
Immediately after, Jay shared another brief, seven-second clip on Snapchat, also depicting the area near the Airbnb. The spot was pinpointed using GPS data.
Jay's mobile disclosed that between 7.33am and 8.50am, there was a flurry of incoming and outgoing messages with his pals Lucy, Bradley, and Brandon. The final bit of activity on Jay's phone was clocked at 8.50:37.
The report also illustrates, via a spreadsheet, the dwindling battery life of Jay's iPhone. At 8.27am it had three per cent, then two per cent at 8.33am and one per cent at 8.52am when it is believed that the mobile died.
The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week
In her conclusion, DCI Higson stated: "There is frequent communication and activity through the phone throughout the 16th to 17th June until 8.51am following which there is no activity until the device is located and examined by Spanish authorities.
"Jay makes reference to being incapacitated (unspecified whether through drink or drugs). Attempts were made by Jay's associates to locate him in order to return him home, he made it clear he wished to stay out and did not reply to multiple queries concerning his whereabouts.
"There is no evidence of any recorded health activity on Jay's iPhone 14 after 8.49am on 17th June 2024. Battery life data corroborates accounts that Jay had stated his battery was running out of charge.
"The last recorded location data is consistent with the area of the island in which he was found. There is no evidence of any threat of harm towards Jay or indication that he was in fear for his safety."
Sign up to the Irish Mirror's Courts and Crime newsletter here and get breaking crime updates and news from the courts direct to your inbox.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTÉ News
2 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Rebel Spanish nuns vow to fight convent eviction
A group of Spanish nuns who were excommunicated by the Catholic Church and joined a sect appeared in court on Tuesday vowing to resist eviction from their 15th-century convent. The year-long dispute saw the nuns from the Order of Saint Clare split from the Vatican in May 2024 over a property dispute and doctrinal wrangling, claiming their wish to buy another convent had been blocked. They have since declared allegiance to an excommunicated ultra-conservative priest, viewed as a sect by the Church, who has rejected the validity of all popes since the death of Pius XII in 1958. The Archbishop of Burgos has demanded the nuns leave the convent of Santa Clara in the northern town of Belorado, saying they had no legal right to remain there after the excommunication. A court in the nearby town of Briviesca responsible for ruling on the dispute heard the arguments of the Burgos archbishopric and the eight nuns. One of them, Sister Paloma, told journalists outside the court that the nuns arrived "with a very clear conscience" and insisted the convent "is ours". "We are not isolated nuns, we are a legal entity, and they are our possessions," she said. The nuns' lawyer, Florentino Alaez, told a press conference after the hearing that they would appeal if the court ordered their eviction. Natxo de Gamon, a lawyer representing the archbishopric of Burgos, told reporters the nuns currently living in the convent "have no legal right for that, therefore we ask they be removed".
The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Two ‘professional' robbers targeting tourists in Marbella are arrested after posing as holidaymakers to burgle Brits
TWO alleged members of a "professional" robbery gang have been arrested in Marbella after raiding at least nine tourist flats. The pair nicked items worth over £550,000 while tourists were outside their homes, Spain's National Police said. Advertisement 2 The two members of a 'professional' robbery gang arrested in Marbella Credit: 2 A picturesque narrow street with blue flower pots on the walls of houses in old town Credit: Getty The force said the men disguised themselves as tourists to "blend in with their surroundings" and avoid raising suspicions while breaking into rentals. During other burglaries, they were spotted wearing masks and caps to avoid being identified on security cameras. The pair are accused of carrying out at least nine night-time robberies in the popular southern Spanish city, police said. The force added their haul could be worth over £550,000. Advertisement Read more world news Their loot includes jewellery, luxury watches, electronic devices and cash. They allegedly used a well-known technique to open doors, which involves inserting a sheet of flexible plastic between the frame and the lock's hatch. During the investigation, local police revealed that the suspects targeted tourist blocks. They would reportedly wait for tourists to leave the properties before breaking in. Advertisement Most read in The Sun Investigators said they may have used more sophisticated methods, such as "bumping" or "impressioning" - as some victims said they locked the door and found no signs of forced entry upon their return. They scoped out the properties, police said, to determine when tenants or tourists were least likely to be inside. Fans go wild as England beat Spain on penalties to win Women's Euro 2025 final Once inside the homes, the thieves took precautions to avoid leaving fingerprints or traces, police added. The two suspects have been remanded in custody, and further investigations are underway. Advertisement
Irish Examiner
19 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Jennifer Horgan: Bereaved families want to discuss domestic homicide — we owe it to them to talk about it
We don't know what happened in Fermanagh — not exactly. We know only the basic facts: Another woman, Vanessa Whyte, and her two children, James and Sara Rutledge, have been killed in their home on this island. The suspected killer, their husband and father Ian Rutledge, died days later — all four dying from gunshot wounds. It is now being referred to as a suspected triple murder and suicide. Vanessa Whyte was in her 40s; James was 14 and Sara was 13. In the hours and days after the shooting, we were all warned — with a fervour reserved for such crimes — not to speculate. Such warnings form one small part of a wider refusal to look at domestic violence head-on, to examine it in the same way we examine violence in general We all know that if these horrendous deaths had occurred on a city street, the word "evil" would have already made it to print. No sensitivity would have been shown to the family of the suspected perpetrator. When it happens in a home we respond differently — with a sinister meekness, tiptoeing around the grounds of the property and the event, respectful of the privacy of the family, the loss of life inside. This distorted restraint in public discourse allows us to pretend that events like these happen very, very rarely. In truth, they are disturbingly regular. This month, 53-year-old Stephen Mooney, of Kilbarrack Rd, Dublin, was jailed for the murder of his wife Anna, 43, at their home on June 15, 2023. Days ago, 34-year-old Keith Byrne was jailed for 15 years for the brutal murder of his Irish girlfriend Kirsty Ward at their Spanish holiday hotel room. The parents of Kirsty Ward, who was found lying in a corridor by staff, have shared their pain at the sentence given to their daughter's killer. In direct contrast to the rest of us, individuals directly affected by these devastating crimes are taking immediate action and speaking out Jason Poole, whose sister Jennifer Poole was murdered by her former partner Gavin Murphy in April 2021, hopes to have a law named after his sister introduced next year. The legislation will mean people found guilty of domestic violence offences will go on a register to protect future victims. Jason Poole, brother of murdered Jennifer Poole, hopes to have a law named after his sister introduced next year. File Picture: Collins Courts Another bereaved brother is fighting a different but related battle. David French, the sibling of murdered West Cork woman Valerie French Kilroy says a "loophole in child safety in Ireland" permits those who kill their partners or ex-partners to retain guardianship of their shared children. He has been courageously vocal in his battle explaining the extent of his devastation, saying: "My sisters and I have been consumed by this since the murder and there is no end in sight. We have lost someone who was a continual source of joy and loving consideration. "Crimes like this have a ripple effect on relationships, employment, and health. Our children have been deeply traumatised by the sudden loss of their beloved Aunt Valerie, and haunted by thoughts of the killer who we welcomed into our family and as a guest in our homes." Similarly, Clodagh Hawe's mother and sister fought relentlessly to have her body, and the bodies of her children, removed from the same grave as their killer. Close family members want to talk openly about these crimes. Why can't the rest of us? Courageously, they voice their pain and devastation; they confront what needs to be confronted, blasting through our bizarre reverence in response to these most horrendous crimes. So, how can we help them and future victims in how we discuss domestic violence? More needs to be done to manage the reporting of these crimes. Spokespeople and representatives, in particular, need a briefing in how to respond. As it is, they are permitted to say they are in "shock". Every time it is said, again, that they simply can't believe that something so horrific and out of the ordinary has taken place. Again and again, an emphasis is placed on how "close-knit" the community was, how peaceful, how homely. No matter how high the number of instances go, this is all part of a blanket refusal to except that domestic violence is at epidemic levels in Ireland. No community is beyond its reach. No home, however happy it might seem, is safe from its blight The truth is that nobody has a right to say they are shocked anymore — especially not officials interviewed after these events. Our doubt, our disbelief, lets violence in. Domestic violence, like all violence, flourishes in ignorance and silence. The family of Valerie French Kilroy are pushing to change the law that permits those who kill their partners or ex-partners to retain guardianship of their shared children. File Picture: Collins Courts Former DUP leader Arlene Foster said of this latest shooting in a home in Fermanagh was 'just absolutely devastating' and the 'last thing' you expect to hear from a place she described as 'a very sleepy little village in Fermanagh'. We don't know the details yet, we can't know them, but the instant refusal to believe such awfulness can occur anywhere is simply unacceptable. The longer we talk about how an otherwise perfect little village is stunned, the longer this famine of neighbourhood awareness, this tsunami of denial, is likely to continue. Back in June, Women's Aid confirmed that 180 women have been killed in their own homes (63% of femicide) since 1996. Some 87% of women (where the case has been resolved) were killed by a man known to them. In almost all murder-suicide cases (23 out of 24), the killer was the woman's current or former intimate partner. Some 20 children have died during incidents where women have died violently. Nobody should be permitted to say they are 'shocked', because to say so is to wash our hands of the truth Domestic violence is pervasive in Ireland. Every time a woman or her children are killed in their home, we should recall the last crime and the one before that. Yes, this will a painful reminder to many, but bereaved families want the discussion. They are leading the discussion. It's the rest of us who are the problem. Other damaging framing devices are used too — including the concentration on nature throughout any visual reporting. A camera sweeps across a forest or zooms in on a babbling brook. In print media, an article starts with the description of rolling hills and grazing animals. Presumably, such exposition is used to suggest that the violence about to be reported is against nature in some way. The sad truth is that domestic violence is very much in the nature of people — and in the nature of men most particularly. It is not a freakishly uncommon act; it happens everywhere, all the time. Then there is the focus on what a normal family they appeared to be. Why? It is as if to suggest that there is a defining characteristic belonging solely to people who are destined to die in their home. And why the focus on the size of the village or the town or its geographical location? Might a certain size of town should preclude us from these events? These things only happen in the big cities, right? Those dens of iniquity that carry a faulty moral compass. Ireland needs to wake up to itself. In 2024, Women's Aid heard 46,765 disclosures of abuse — including 41,432 disclosures of abuse against women and 5,333 disclosures of abuse against children. One in four women in Ireland experienced sexual violence as an adult with a partner. An Garda Síochána responded to over 65,000 domestic abuse incidents in 2024, which translates to an average of 1,250 incidents every week. The word "tragedy" is also used incorrectly by sources following the worst examples of domestic violence, those ending in death. What is a tragedy? What makes something tragic? Really, it means a sad death. A far more appropriate word here is an "atrocity". It is an atrocity that has happened — a cruel and violent act. How we respond to domestic violence matters. Killers and rapists are not afforded immediate deference and respect when they strike randomly on our streets. People who strike in their own home are no different. The act is the same. The results are the same. Denial, deference, and shock are simply not good enough anymore — from anyone.
