Jay Slater’s mother has called for new regulations to be introduced to curb the spread of misinformation about missing people online as she speaks out in a bid to set the record straight on his final hours.
Debbie Duncan, 57, said “armchair detectives” had been allowed to concoct “shocking” theories and “completely dehumanise” her son after the 19-year-old’s disappearance in Tenerife last year.
A coroner later ruled Jay’s death was caused by a traumatic brain injury caused by a fall sustained when he became lost in the treacherous mountains of Park Rural de Teno.
But, speaking to The Times, she said content creators were still unpicking Jay’s death online, claiming he is still alive and hiding out, ready to reclaim money raised by an emergency GoFundMe appeal for his grieving family.
“How can you say the F-word on Facebook and have your account removed, but people can say what they like about my son and that’s fine?” she asked.
In a separate interview with The Mirror, she said she wanted to “fight for Jay’s name” after the media frenzy that surrounded his death.
“To continue making videos (and posting them online) more than 12 months on, going through every bit of detail over and over again is shocking. When will it stop?
“Social media is good for spreading awareness, but can also be the work of the devil.
“If I can save another family from going through the trauma we have had to endure, it will be worth it.”
Her comments come ahead of a Channel 4 documentary,The Disappearance of Jay Slater, which airs on Sunday, 28 September at 9pm.
The programme will give unprecedented access into the 19-year-old’s final hours, which became the subject of countless conspiracy theories and media reports in June 2024.
An apprentice bricklayer from Lancashire, Jay had gone on holiday to the New Rave Generation (NRG) festival in Tenerife with his friends, Lucy Law and Bradley Geoghegan.
On the night of his disappearance, he had been out at the Papagayo nightclub in Playa de Las Americas when he decided to return to the Airbnb of Ayub Qassim and Steven “Rocky” Roccas, two men he had met during the holiday. The villa was 23 miles northwest of Playa de las Americas, surrounded by the rocky national park Rural de Teno.
He later phoned Ms Law to say he was lost in the mountains and had cut his leg on a cactus. His phone then died, and a huge manhunt was launched.
Rescue teams scoured the treacherous terrain for weeks in the burning sun in a bid to find the teenager – all the while, conspiracy theorists online sent Debbie and her family on “wild goose chases”.
After 29 days, his body was uncovered in what a coroner later called a “particularly dangerous” area of the vast park. He died instantly from a traumatic brain injury as a result of a fall. The 19-year-old had traces of cocaine, ecstasy and ketamine in his body, according to toxicologists.
But even the coroner’s ruling didn’t stop misinformation swirling online. Theories that he had been kidnapped by drug dealers whom he owed money, or had staged his own death, can still be found, 15 months on from his death.
Debbie told The Mirror: “What we have had to endure has really opened my eyes.
“It is not just us who are horrified by what has gone on – professional people are horrified too. I wanted this documentary to be made because I want to show Jay is a real person and not just the face of a story.
“I want to show everyone we are a normal family. Jay was a popular guy with a lot of friends and it’s been hard to watch it. I cried all the way through, but I hope it will finally shut down the armchair detectives. It’s been very well put together.”
