Tenerife cafe owner says they spoke to Jay Slater the morning he vanished
21.06.2024 - 21:15
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
A cafe owner in Tenerife has said she spoke to teenager Jay Slater on the morning he went missing.
The 19-year-old from Lancashire has not been seen since Monday morning (June 17) when he told his friend he had just one per cent phone battery and did not know how to get back to his hotel. His disappearance has prompted a huge search across the north west of the Spanish island, involving the Civil Guard and mountain search teams.
Friday marked the fifth day of intense and gruelling searches in and around the village of Masca, bordered by steep terrain and mountains with just one road in and out. The vast search area - around 30 square kilometres - is focussing on three main areas, Masca Gorge, La Vica, and Las Portelas.
READ MORE: Jay Slater updates - Police searching 'dangerous' location as friends issue statement - latest from our reporter in Tenerife
Jay reportedly asked a cafe owner twice what time a bus was due to arrive in Buenavista del Norte at around 8am on Monday before walking off.
Ofelia Medina Hernandez told Sky News: “I saw the boy in the morning at around 8am. He asked twice what time the bus came. I told him ‘at 10 o’clock’. He came back and asked me again, and I told him again - at 10 o’clock.
“After that, he walked off and I didn’t see him anymore. Later, I went in my car and I saw him. He was walking fast. But I didn’t see him again after that.”
Jay's mum Debbie Duncan, who flew out to Tenerife with other friends and family the day after her son was reported missing, spoke from her apartment on Friday, saying local police had 'stepped up' their search as another day passed without any answers.
She said there have been difficulties with the 'language barrier' when dealing with Spanish police, and that