Mum of Lancashire teen Jay Slater missing in Tenerife speaks of 'living nightmare' in ITV interview

Jay, 19, from Oswaldtwistle, was last heard from on Monday morning as he told a friend he planned to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus, a journey expected to take around 11 hours on foot.

Mum Debbie Duncan flew to Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands on Tuesday morning to search for him.

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In her first video interview, Jay’s mum told ITV News she feared her son had “been taken against his will”.

‘He’s out there somewhere, somebody knows where he is’

“It’s like a dream, like it’s not happening,” she said on Wednesday.

“I wouldn’t wish this on anybody. I just want my baby back”, said an emotional Debbie, fighting back tears.

“It’s over 48 hours now since he last had any contact with anybody.

“He’s out there somewhere, or somebody knows where he is. We just need to find my baby.”

Debbie said her son had gone to Tenerife to attend the NRG music festival on the island - his first holiday abroad.

She said: “I wish I hadn’t encouraged him to go to this. I should have said: ‘Don’t go to Tenerife.’

“I just think he was probably still in high spirits, buzzing – he’s not known where he is. He’s not known the extent of the long journey that he went on to get up there.

“And he’s just thought: ‘I’m gonna walk.’ And that’s what apparently he said to the last person he contacted.”

Describing her son, Ms Duncan said: “He’s the life and soul, he’s a beautiful boy.”

Speaking to the PA news agency, she said: “It’s just traumatic and it doesn’t feel real. It’s just awful, it’s horrendous.

“I think he’s been taken against his will with what’s been said, but it’s in the hands of the police.

“He’s just a great person who everyone wanted to be with. He’s good looking, he’s a popular boy.”

She added that the police leading the search had been “very good”.

Jay’s friend Lucy – who had gone to the island with him to attend the NRG music festival – told the media he had gone to stay with people he had met on holiday after a night out.

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She said she had received a call from Jay at around 8.15am on Monday after he missed the bus and was trying to walk back although he had said he was lost, needed a drink of water and had only 1% battery on his phone.

Jay’s phone then cut off, with his last location showing as the Rural de Teno park – a mountainous area popular with hikers.

Lucy said one of the people Jay had met had driven them back to his apartment in a hire car and the missing man had not realised how far away it was.

“He’s ended up out in the middle of nowhere. Jay was obviously thinking he would be able to get home from there,” she said.

“But then in the morning he’s set off walking, using his maps on his phone and ended up in the middle of mountains with nothing around.”

Jay was last seen wearing a white T-shirt with shorts and trainers.

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of a British man who has been reported missing in Spain and are in contact with the local authorities.”