Reason 'Jay Slater refused lift from Airbnb' by British man staying there revealed by TV detective

A former top cop from the UK has claimed that he has uncovered the reason that Jay Slater left the remote Airbnb he had travelled back to in Tenerife on foot.

Mark Williams-Thomas - who has worked on several high profile cases, including the outing of disgraced entertainer Jimmy Saville and the disappearance of Nicola Bulley - has shared a dramatic update on his investigation into the case.

He flew out to Tenerife a few weeks ago to get a firsthand look at the 'scenario and circumstances' of the teenager's baffling disappearance and has since spoken to the man who was one of the last people to see Jay alive.

The 19-year-old from Lancashire went missing on 17 June after attending the New Rave Generation festival and heading back to a £40-a-night Airbnb rental in Masca with Ayub Qassim and another lad in the early hours.

Thomas explained that he has been in touch with Qassim, 31, to gather more crucial information regarding the apprentice bricklayer's last known movements.

The TV detective shared a video on social media detailing his latest findings, saying that Qassim - who is also known by the nickname 'Jonny Vegas' - was partying with Jay on the strip in Playa de las Americas before they left together.

Thomas explained: "He said that Jay wanted to carry on partying and that he hadn't anywhere to stay, so he [Qassim] invited him back to his rental. In the car they played music all the way, they stopped once to get a can of fizzy drink, and there was three of them in the car, Jay in the back and Qassim's friend in the front."

After arriving at the Airbnb, Qassim claimed that he offered Jay a blanket, a towel incase he needed a shower and the sofa to sleep on, while his other pal headed straight into his room at the accommodation and fell asleep.

Thomas continued: "Jay also asked for a cigarette and Qassim gave him a Camel cigarette and left it on the side. Jay then asked for a charger and then went into Qassim's friend room, while he was sleeping and got the charger.

"There was no charging point by the sofa."

Qassim is then said to have fallen asleep himself before being awoken by the sound of a buzzer and heading to the door to find a man and woman asking him to move his car.

While he did so, he apparently saw Jay 'chatting to a woman' and noted that he had his trainers on as though he was ready to leave.

Thomas explained: "He said that after moving the car, he came back and saw Jay had his trainers on and he told Qassim that the woman had said he could get a bus 'every ten minutes'.

"Qassim said to him 'Chill, mate, I'll drop you off later, when I wake up' but he said Jay said 'nah, I need some scran, I'm hungry'."

The tourist said he told Jay that there was no bus coming and that he could knock on their door if he changed his mind, before Qassim then fell back asleep again.

Update on disappearance of Jay Slater : I have now spoken to one of the men that took Jay back to his holiday rental.
And my investigation has opened up an established criminal network with links to drugs , violent crime and thefts . pic.twitter.com/OWMOXGeGlI

— Mark Williams-Thomas (@mwilliamsthomas) July 7, 2024

Thomas believes that all the evidence currently at his disposal 'strongly supports that Jay left the Airbnb suddenly, walked for thirty minutes before wandering off road on the Monday where he dropped a location ping'.

Finishing off the video, he added: "The result of this digging has opened up an established criminal network with links to drugs, violent crime and theft.

"You will appreciate that at this stage I cannot expand any further on what we now know.

"However, at this stage I'm unable to say if this network has anything to do with Jay's disappearance."

Police on the Spanish island previously ruled out Qassim and his pal for having any involvement in Jay going missing.

Jay Slater's disappearance: timeline of key moments

Sunday 16 June

Jay attends the New Rave Generation music festival with friends at Papagayo nightclub in the tourist resort of Playa de las Americas in the south of the island.

Monday 17 June

In the early hours of Monday, Jay goes to stay in an apartment in the north of the island with people he had met over the course of the night.

7.30am

Jay posts a picture on Snapchat from the doorway of the property he stayed at overnight, tagged as being in Rural de Teno park.

8.30am

He calls his friend, Lucy Law, telling her he had attempted to walk back to his accommodation after missing his bus – a journey that would take more than ten hours.

He said he had 'cut his leg' on a cactus and had 'no idea where he was'.

He also said his phone was on one percent battery. His last known location is Rural de Teno park.

9.04am

He is reported missing.

Tuesday 18 June

After friends spend the previous day searching to no avail, local police and mountain rescue teams scour Rural de Teno park for Jay.

His family fly out to Tenerife to join the search.

Wednesday 19 June

The search is temporarily moved to the Los Cristianos area in the south of the island due to a potential lead, but this amounts to nothing and the search returns north.

Jay’s mum Debbie Duncan says she fears her son had 'been taken against his will'.

Sunday 23 June

TV detective Mark Williams-Thomas offers his team's expertise in the search for Jay. He writes on X: "If [Jay's family] give me total access and with feet on the ground I will very quickly be able to say if his disappearance is him alone or if it has third party involvement."

Sunday 30 June

The Tenerife Civil Guard announce they are ending the search for Jay after 13 days, but the investigation remains open and they will follow up any new leads. Jay's family vow to continue the search themselves.