Jay Slater search update as Army vet warns one location ‘hasn’t been searched properly’ | World | News

The ravine where missing teenager Jay Slater may have disappeared in “has not been searched properly”, a British army veteran says. Chris Pennington has been leading the search in Tenerife after Spanish police called off the search on July 1.

But Pennington says the area is so vast that the teen could still be there without being spotted. He’s shared regular updates with his 40,000 TikTok followers as he continues to search around where Jay’s phone was last pinged.

The former army reservist believes Slater may still be in the ravine, and says he could have had an “accident” as he navigated the treacherous terrain.

Pennington has also voiced concern about the impact of the scorching tempetures and high altitude in the mountains, which he fears could have caused Slater to become dehydrated and pass out.

The apprentice bricklayer spoke to his best friend Lucy Mae Law on the phone the morning he vanished, reportedly telling her he “needed water” before his phone battery died.

In an update from the search site, Pennington said: “That area has not been searched properly because it is so hard to search.

“To get through that you would literally need 100 people just trying to bulldoze their way through it and even then its just a needle in a haystack.

“He’s had a fall, he’s had an accident or he’s dehydrated and passed out. I feel he’s in this ravine, in this area of Tenerife missing – I honestly believe that,” he added.

Slater, an apprentice Bricklayer from Lancashire, was last seen on June 17 after leaving an Airbnb in the northern village of Masca, the night after attending a festival at the Papagayo nightclub in the southern resort of Playa de las Americas.

After the festival he is believed to have entered a car in the early hours and travelled to Masca with two men, who Spanish authorities said they spoke to before deeming them “not relevant” to the case.

At 8.30am on June 17, Slater called Law, telling her he had missed his bus and was planning to walk back to his own accomodation, which was some 11 hours away on foot.

He told his long-time pal he had “cut his leg” on a cactus, was “lost in the mountains” with no idea where he was before his phone ran out of battery. He was reported missing at 9.04am.

The now concluded police search included a steep rocky area, ravines and trails with helicopters, drones and search dogs deployed in the hunt for Slater, but he couldn’t be found.

After wrapping up the search early this month, the Guardia Civil (which was leading the efforts) told Sky News his family could bring in their own search and rescue teams to carry on looking.

Spanish authorities say the investigation into his disappearance is still ongoing but refuse to disclose lines of enquiry.