Jay Slater's mother has returned to Tenerife to retrace her son's final steps and has spoken of the "horror" of accidentally seeing photographs of his dead body. Debbie Duncan travelled back to the island nearly two years after 19-year-old Jay disappeared during a holiday in June 2024, which sparked a huge search operation.
The 57-year-old, accompanied by Jay's uncle Glen Duncan, visits the Rural de Teno national park for a new Channel 5 documentary, retracing the route her son took in the hours before his death. Debbie also revealed she was shown photographs of Jay's body by Spanish police when she returned to Tenerife to collect his phone and paperwork following his death, reports the Mirror.
Mum's horror at seeing images
She said: "I did think about it and thought, I don't think I can. But then, when we had to go back to Tenerife to get paperwork from the courts and to collect his phone, to my horror there were images of Jay. I thought my heart was going to stop beating.
"Whenever people say, 'How did you know it was Jay?' Well, it was Jay. My beautiful boy."
Documentary retraces final steps
In the documentary, Debbie visits the spot where Jay left the road before breaking down in tears as she lays flowers for her son. The trip came weeks after she received the delayed Spanish post-mortem report, which confirmed Jay died after falling into a ravine.
She also speaks to pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd, who conducted the Home Office post-mortem, about the injuries Jay suffered. Dr Shepherd said the head injury was so severe that it would probably have killed Jay immediately, meaning he would not have experienced prolonged pain or suffering.
Discovery and inquest
Jay's body was discovered four weeks after he disappeared in a remote area near Masca. An inquest in 2025 concluded Jay died on June 17, 2024, with injuries consistent with a "heavy fall from height".
His disappearance was followed by widespread online speculation and conspiracy theories, with false claims continuing to circulate even after the inquest. Jay had travelled to Tenerife on his first holiday without his parents and disappeared after getting into a car with two men he had met while on the trip.
The group travelled to an Airbnb in Masca, around 20 miles from the NRG music festival and Papagayo nightclub in Playa de Las Americas. After leaving the property, Jay called his friend Lucy Law and said he was lost in the mountains.
He also told friend Bradley Geoghegan that he was trekking back because he had missed a bus. He was reported missing after failing to return to his accommodation.
