Jay Slater's friend reveals final panicked texts from doomed teen at inquest

Jay Slater’s body was found in a ravine 29 days after vanishing (Picture: PA / EPA)

Jay Slater’s friends have spoken of his final panicked moments as he realised he was lost in the mountains as he attempted a 14-hour walk home,an inquest has heard.

The 19-year-old had taken ecstasy,cocaine,alcohol and possibly ketamine the evening of his disappearance in Tenerife,his friend said.

Jay,from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, vanished after attending NRG music festival last June.

Jay Slater,Lancashire,disappeared following an attempt to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus (Picture: Facebook)

He is thought to have gone to an Airbnb with convicted drug dealer Ayub Qassim,31,and fellow Briton,Steven Roccas before he disappeared.

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Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.He was reported missing on June 18 and his remains were found near the village of Masca 29 days later.The disappearance captivated millions on social media,with TikTok,Facebook,Instagram and X flooded with a mix of conspiracy theories about drug cartels and claims about Jay’s past.His friend Lucy Law,who launched the search,called Jay around 8.30am and had sent him a message saying: ‘Go back to wherever the f**k you just came from before it gets boiling.’She said on the call she asked him: ‘What on earth are you doing? ‘Where are you?‘He was just,‘I’m in the middle of the mountains’.’She asked him what he could see,and he replied: ‘Nothing. Literally nothing. There’s literally just mountains.’Mr Slater also said he needed a drink and asked if cacti are poisonous.Ms Law added: ‘By this stage,I’m panicking.’Another friend Bradley Geoghegan,who was on holiday with Jay,spoke to the inquest into his death about the final night the 19-year-old was seen alive.Jay had been kicked out of a club because he was so drunk,but decided against going back to the apartment he was sharing with Geoghegan.Instead he went to an Airbnb miles away with two men he met on holiday.Geoghegan told Preston Coroner’s Court heard that he got a video call from Jay the next morning,who was walking along a road ‘under the influence’.A view of the Airbnb Casa Abuela Tina in Masca,Tenerife,where Jay Slater resided prior to his disappearance (Picture: James Manning/PA Wire)Geoghegan said: ‘I said put your maps on to see how far you were. It was like a 14-hour walk or an hour drive. I said,“Get a taxi back”,then he just goes,“I will ring you back”.’Jay likely did not have any money on him,with taxis in Tenerife insisting on payment before taking a ride,the witness added.When asked if the teenager had appeared ‘threatened’ or ‘under duress’,Geoghegan said no.‘I think he probably got there and thought,“Why am I here?”,sobered up and decided to come back,’ he added.Evidence heard during the inquest suggested Jay had attempted to walk back from his own apartment after failing to get a taxi.He then fell from a height into a ravine,with a huge search discovering his body on July 15.Jay’s mum Debbie Duncan asked for the inquest to carry on (Picture: Chris Neill)During the hearing in May,toxicology expert Dr Stephanie Martin said there were difficulties checking for the presence of drugs or alcohol in a body so severely decomposed.But she said analysis of Jay’s body showed traces of the presence of MDMA and MDA,commonly known as ecstasy along with cocaine and alcohol.Dr Martin said because of the limitations of the analysis,she could not say exactly how much or how soon before death the drugs had been taken.Home Office pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd said his post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as head injuries.He added that Jay’s body had no signs of restraint or assault.Data from the teenager’s phone had also been analysed by police,Lancashire Constabulary’s Detective Chief Inspector Rachel Higson told the hearing.A volunteer firefighter searches for Jay Slater in the Juan Lopez ravine near Masca before he was found dead (Picture: REUTERS)The next witness was Ayub Qassim,who told the court about meeting Jay on a night out with his friend Steven Roccas.He said he had been in a different venue before later meeting Slater and Geoghegan and getting food after clubs closed.Qassim described Jay as: ‘On a buzz. Chilled,happy. Mingling in’it.’Jay then asked to go back to his and Roccas’ apartment. 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 asked Qassim about messages sent by Jay describing a possible watch theft.Unseen videos show Jay Slater bragging about taking a £12,000 watch (Picture: CPS)A video in May seemingly show Jay at the back of a car en route to the remote village of Masca after having been kicked out of a rave.In the 6am videos,he appears to brag about stealing a watch in the Snapchat posts.He says: ‘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.’Qassim,however,described how he saw a man take a watch from another person on the strip in Tenerife and tried to sell it to him and Jay.But Qassim insisted: ‘Jay did not steal no watch. I can say one hundred per cent.’When asked if he was involved in a watch theft,he replied: ‘No. And neither was he.’Trying to explain the social media posts,Jay 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 then asked: ‘But so far as you are concerned,none of that is true?”Qassim replied: “No. One hundred per cent. I didn’t see a watch. At this point he’s just firing off messages.’Once back at the remote apartment,Jay was then given a blanket and a pillow at the Airbnb to sleep on the sofa,the witness added.