Local in 'beautiful' Tenerife area where Jay Slater went missing reveals another mystery
The body of Jay Slater was found on Monday, four weeks after the teenager from Lancashire went missing in the Tenerife mountains.
Jay Slater’s mother 'heartbroken' after court confirms death
The reason why Jay Slater decided to attempt to walk through the treacherous area near the village of Masca in northwestern Tenerife has been described as a "mystery" by a local resident.
Helena Gomes, 35, expressed her sadness in light of the death of the 19-year-old, who went missing on June 17 while holidaying on the Canary island with friends.
Describing just how perilous the ravine area is to trek, the woman told the Mirror: "You see how bad it is, we don’t even walk there, so if someone gets into trouble it is going to be hard for anyone to find the body. No one is surprised it took so long, why he was there is a mystery, he should never have been going that way, maybe he saw the ocean and thought it was the best way.
"We just feel so bad for his family but are so proud of the searchers who found him, they never gave up."
Jim Scanlon, 56, from Dunfermline, described the ravine as "beautiful and inviting" from afar, while overlooking it from the nearby Mirador La Cruz de Hilda viewpoint.
He added: "Reading about the case before we came out I could not get my head round the geography, but when you see in the flesh you see how brutal it is. I’m just not surprised it took the rescuers so long to find him. I’ll say a little prayer for Jay and his mum before I leave."
Jay was crossing the area in an attempt to walk back from the Masca area to Los Cristianos, where his accommodation was - despite the trip being around 11 hours long by foot.
He had travelled by car to northwestern Tenerife with two British men hours prior, and stayed at the Airbnb they were renting for a while before he decided to leave at approximately 8am.
Don't miss...
Jay Slater’s mum pays tribute with heartbreaking two-word message [REPORT]
Jay Slater search update as police say 'everything is pointing' to one thing [INSIGHT]
Jay Slater updates as key piece of evidence found on body in Tenerife search [LIVE BLOG]
Jay's phone, which the apprentice bricklayer from Lancashire had told his friend Lucy Law during a call that same morning was just on one percent, last pinged at 8.50am, near where the body was found.
After identifying Jay's body, a Civil Guard spokeswoman shed light on the injuries found on the 19-year-old, which suggest he had a catastrophic fall.
She said: "The body of the man located yesterday has been identified of that as Jay Slater through fingerprint comparison and identification.
"The result of the preliminary autopsy points to the cause of death being a fall or plunge from height due to the broken bones he suffered."
