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RTÉ News
7 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Jay Slater died by accident after fall
Teenager Jay Slater who went missing in Tenerife last summer sparking a huge search, died by accident after falling from a height, a coroner at his inquest has concluded. He had told his friends he was "in the middle of the mountains" and in need of a drink, as he attempted a 14-hour walk home the morning after taking drugs and alcohol on a night out, Preston Coroner's Court has heard. Mr Slater, 19, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, was holidaying in Tenerife and had been to the NRG music festival with friends at the Papagayo nightclub in the resort of Playa de las Americas, on 16 June last year. But he vanished the next morning after going with two men to an Airbnb in Masca, a village in the mountains miles from his holiday apartment in Los Cristianos. A huge search was launched before his body was found in a steep and inaccessible area, by a mountain rescue team from the Spanish Civil Guard, near the village of Masca, on 15 July. He had been reported missing on 18 June. The inquest heard his phone battery had died and he needed a drink but had no water as he set off on the 14-hour walk home in the early morning. As temperatures grew he left the road and ended up in the ravine, where his body was found having suffered severe head injuries from a fall. Coroner said no one else involved in death Concluding a two-day inquest into his death, Dr James Adeley, senior coroner for Lancashire and Blackburn with Darwen, said: "Jay fell at a particularly dangerous area in difficult terrain." "He fell approximately 20 to 25 metres, suffering skull fractures and brain trauma from which he would have died instantaneously. Jay Dean Slater died an accidental death. Dr Adeley said contributing factors to the fall may have been a lack of suitable clothing, sleep and mountain training, as well as potential after effects of drugs he had consumed. Friends concerned about him He noted that on the night of 16 June and afterwards, there was "every indication" that Mr Slater's friends who were accompanying him on the holiday were concerned about him, tried to find him and look after his welfare "This is a tragic death of a young man," he said. Dr Adeley said the evidence showed there was no one else involved in the death and no evidence to suggest Mr Slater had been threatened, assaulted, was under duress or in fear for his safety. The coroner told Mr Slater's family sat in court that he hoped the "examination of facts rather than conjecture" during the hearing had been some consolation to them. Mr Slater's tearful mother, Debbie Duncan, had earlier given a tribute to her son at the hearing today, saying: "He was very loved and our hearts are broken," Ms Duncan said.
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Daily Mirror
Jay Slater sent chilling text to friend just hours before vanishing in Tenerife
Former detective Mark Williams-Thomas previously said Jay Slater had sent a text to a friend before he went missing - the message claimed someone had 'a marker' on him Jay Slater sent a cryptic text to a friend while he was "buzzing" and seemingly experiencing "paranoia", according to an investigator. The 19-year-old teen, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, was holidaying in Tenerife and attended the NRG music festival with friends at the Papagayo nightclub in the resort of Playa de las Americas on June 16 last year. He is believed to have gone to a holiday rental apartment in the early hours of the next morning before vanishing. He was reported missing on June 18 and his body was found in a ravine by a mountain rescue team from the Spanish Civil Guard near the village of Masca on July 15. A post-mortem found Jay had consumed alcohol and drugs in the hours before he fell down the ravine. According to former detective Mark Williams-Thomas, Jay wanted to carry on partying even though his friends left, which led him to make the decision to travel far away from his accommodation. An inquest today heard that when the teen said he was going to an Airbnb with new friends Ayub Qassim and Steven Roccas, his friend Brad Hargreaves, who was visiting the Spanish island with Jay and is also known as Bradley Geoghegan, "didn't think anything of it" as the pair were with them "for three days". Previously, Detective Williams-Thomas said in a podcast: "Jay was still buzzing at 6am from the alcohol and drugs but his friends wanted to go home, so when Qassim told Jay that he could go back to theirs and continue partying he jumped at the chance." He added that at 2.35am, Jay sent a cryptic text to a friend, saying: "They've got a marker on me." His friend replied to the text at 3am, saying: "You need to go home lad you're off your barnet." Jay then replied by writing: "You think I'm going home you must be disabled." At this stage, the investigator said, Jay "was very heavily under the influence of drink and drugs." According to Mr Williams-Thomas, it is possible that "some paranoia" was present "because his friends were saying he was not making much sense and being argumentative which was very unlike Jay." He added: "Jay had no official marker on him, and yes he was around people selling drugs and he could have upset people that morning because of his state." The investigator's comments have resurfaced after Mr Qassim gave evidence to the inquiry today, saying he met Jay and his friends out in Tenerife. He said he had been in a different venue then later met Jay and his friend Bradley getting something to eat after the clubs closed. Mr Qassim described Jay as: "On a buzz. Chilled, happy. Mingling in'it." He said Jay then asked if he could come back to his and Mr Roccas' apartment. Giving evidence via videolink, Mr Qassim told the hearing: "I did say, 'Bro, oh mate, it's so far away from the strip.' There's nothing happening there other than scenery. I said I would drop him off in the morning. He rolled with us." The coroner then asked the witness about messages Jay had sent about a watch possibly being stolen. Mr Qassim said while still on the strip before leaving for their apartment he saw what he described as a Romanian "lucky-lucky" man take a watch from another person before trying to sell it to him and Jay. He added: "Jay did not steal no watch. I can say one hundred per cent." While on the drive to the Airbnb, Jay then posted a message to friends on social media, saying: "Just took a 12k Rolly (Rolex) off some c*** with this Maili (Somalian) kid. Off to get 10 quid (thousand) for it. Off my undies ha, ha, ha." Coroner Dr Adeley asked the witness: "You were not involved in taking a watch?" Mr Qassim replied: "No. And neither was he." Asked to explain the social media post by Jay, the witness said: "He could be boasting to his friends. He's on a buzz, so maybe it could be that. Sometimes people do exaggerate." The coroner continued: "But so far as you are concerned, none of that is true?" Mr Qassim said: "No. One hundred per cent. I didn't see a watch. At this point he's just firing off messages." He said when they got to his Airbnb he gave Jay a blanket and pillow and told him he could sleep on the sofa downstairs before going off to his own bed. He said that from upstairs he could hear Jay moving around and heard the door open. He fell asleep and then was woken by the door buzzing because someone wanted him to move his car, the inquest heard. Mr Qassim said when he returned to the house, Jay was leaving and told him: "I'm going to catch a bus." He said: "I went 'bro, there ain't no buses coming here any time soon'." He said Jay said he had been told there were buses every 10 minutes. He told him that was wrong but Jay left anyway, he said. He added: "At that point I presumed he'd sit at that bus stop and that's it. He's waiting till the first bus comes and he's out of there."
Daily Record
a day ago
- Daily Record
Inquest into Jay Slater's Tenerife death resumes today as family desperate for answers
The 19-year-old was holidaying on the Spanish island before his death. The inquest into the tragic death of teenager Jay Slater, who died last summer in Tenerife, is set to continue. The 19 year old lad from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, was on holiday on the Spanish island and had attended the NRG music festival with mates at the Papagayo nightclub in the resort of Playa de las Americas on June 16 last year. It's believed that he went to a holiday let flat in the wee hours of the following morning before disappearing, and was reported missing on June 18. Evidence suggests he left the flat hours later, tried to walk back to his own flat and tragically fell into a ravine. A massive search was initiated before his body was discovered in a steep and inaccessible area by a mountain rescue team from the Spanish Civil Guard near the village of Masca on July 15. Several witnesses who were with him on the night he vanished or at the holiday let flat failed to attend the inquest when it began at Preston Coroner's Court in May. The court was told they could not be located or were unavailable, despite extensive efforts to bring them in as witnesses. Debbie Duncan, Mr Slater's mum, tearfully requested the coroner to adjourn as the family still had questions for the last people to see him alive. Dr James Adeley, senior coroner for Lancashire and Blackburn with Darwen, agreed to adjourn until Thursday July 24 to make a final attempt to locate the witnesses. The hearing in May heard from witnesses including toxicology expert Dr Stephanie Martin, reports Wales Online. The court was informed that analysis revealed traces of drugs – including cocaine, ketamine and ecstasy – and alcohol in Mr Slater's body. Home Office pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd stated his post-mortem examination identified the cause of death as head injuries and there was no evidence of restraint or assault on Mr Slater's body, with the pattern of injuries being consistent with a fall from height. Detective Chief Inspector Rachel Higson, from Lancashire Constabulary, revealed that police had analysed Mr Slater's phone data. On the night out, he had received messages from friends advising him to go home as he was "off his head". Phone location data indicated he travelled to the holiday flat then departed the property at around 7.45am the next day. Statements from local Spanish witnesses claimed they were approached by Mr Slater asking about buses or taxis to take him home. Further messages from friends warned him about the "boiling" heat of the day but activity data on his phone ceased at 8.51am, suggesting the battery had run out. Marieke Krans from Dutch rescue charity Signi Zoekhonden assisted in the search. She described the area where the body was discovered as being about a three and a half-hour walk from the holiday apartment and was "really steep, really dangerous", and it was "easy" to lose your footing. The coroner suggested to the hearing that one explanation for Mr Slater's death could be "he has walked into the middle of nowhere and fallen off a cliff". The inquest is set to conclude on Friday.
ITV News
a day ago
- ITV News
Inquest to resume into death of teenager Jay Slater in Tenerife
The inquest into the death of teenager Jay Slater in Tenerife last summer is due to resume. The 19-year-old, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, was holidaying on the Spanish island and had been to the NRG music festival with friends at the Papagayo nightclub in the resort of Playa de las Americas on 16 June last year. He is believed to have gone to a holiday rental apartment in the early hours of the next morning before vanishing, and was reported missing on 18 June. Evidence suggests he left the flat hours later, attempted to walk back to his own apartment and fell into a ravine. A huge search was launched before his body was found in a steep and inaccessible area by a mountain rescue team from the Spanish Civil Guard near the village of Masca on 15 July. A number of witnesses who were with him on the night he disappeared or at the rental apartment did not attend the inquest when it started at Preston Coroner's Court in May. The court heard they could not be traced or were unavailable, despite extensive efforts to get them to come as witnesses. Debbie Duncan, Mr Slater's mother, tearfully asked the coroner to adjourn as the family still had questions for the last people to see him alive. Dr James Adeley, senior coroner for Lancashire and Blackburn with Darwen, agreed to adjourn to Thursday 24 July to make a final attempt to trace the witnesses. The hearing in May heard from witnesses including toxicology expert Dr Stephanie Martin. The court heard that analysis showed traces of drugs – including cocaine, ketamine and ecstasy – and alcohol in Mr Slater's body. Home Office pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd said his post-mortem examination gave cause of death as head injuries and Mr Slater's body showed no evidence of restraint or assault, with the pattern of injuries consistent with a fall from height. Detective Chief Inspector Rachel Higson, from Lancashire Constabulary, said police had analysed Mr Slater's phone data. On the night out he had received phone messages from friends telling him to go home as he was 'off his head'. Phone location data suggested he travelled to the holiday flat then left the property at around 7.45am the next day. Statements from local Spanish witnesses said they were approached and asked by Mr Slater about buses or taxis to take him home. More messages from friends warned him about the 'boiling' heat of the day but activity data on his phone stopped at 8.51am, suggesting the battery had died. Marieke Krans from Dutch rescue charity Signi Zoekhonden helped in the search. She said the area where the body was found was about a three and a half-hour walk from the holiday apartment and was 'really steep, really dangerous', and it was 'easy' to lose your footing. The coroner told the hearing that one explanation for Mr Slater's death could be 'he has walked into the middle of nowhere and fallen off a cliff'. The inquest is scheduled to conclude on Friday.
Ya Biladi
7 days ago
- Ya Biladi
Spanish authorities intercept 28,000 smuggled cigarettes from Morocco at Algeciras port
The Spanish Civil Guard and customs authorities at the Port of Algeciras have foiled two attempts to smuggle large quantities of cigarettes from Morocco, according to Spanish media reports. In two separate operations carried out on July 13, customs officers and surveillance units seized a total of 28,000 undeclared packs of cigarettes hidden inside vehicles arriving from Morocco. The individuals involved, along with the seized goods and official reports, have been referred to the Algeciras Primary Court. The first bust took place during a routine inspection in the vehicle control area for arrivals from Tangier. Officers became suspicious after noticing the nervous behavior of a semi-trailer truck driver. A thorough search revealed 3,000 packs of cigarettes concealed in the trailer. The driver was cited for an administrative offense related to smuggling. The second operation led to the arrest of two individuals after a refrigerated truck, sealed upon departure, showed signs of tampering during transit. Upon inspection, authorities uncovered 25,000 additional packs hidden inside. In total, 28,000 cigarette packs were confiscated, with an estimated value of over €140,000.
