Truth behind ‘distressing’ Jay Slater video handed round our WhatsApp teams

Disturbing footage of a bloody lad being hit in the face has sparked concern as the Jay Slater investigation rumbles on.

Armchair detectives feared things for the 19-year-old, who went missing on June 17 after a weekend rave in Tenerife, weren’t ‘looking good’ after the ‘distressing’ video went viral on social media. It has also been shared widely on WhatsApp groups.

The now-deleted footage comes after Spanish police ended their official manhunt for the apprentice bricklayer, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, but confirmed they are still following several leads.

READ MORE: TikTok star ends search for missing Jay Slater in Tenerife due to ‘funding issues’

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However, TV investigator and former cop Mark Williams-Thomas, who has been in the holiday hotspot and speaking to witnesses, has debunked claims around the identity of the tortured bloke.

“Update on a Video: lots of people are contacting us about a distressing video that is circulating,” the investigator wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “The video was first posted on a social media site nine years ago and therefore cannot be Jay Slater.”

Amateur sleuths have also hit out at the viral video, claiming it was filmed ‘years ago’ after a Russian man was found abusing a little dog. Others pointed out that Jay would unlikely be wearing a coat considering the high temperatures Tenerife sees in the summer.

“Live leaks doesn’t even exist anymore and hasn’t for quite a few years now,” one user wrote. Another agreed, commenting: “I saw this video years ago. If I’m not mistaken it was in Russia.” A third added: “Looks nothing like him.”

British video-sharing site LiveLeak was founded in October 2006, aiming to encourage citizen journalists to spread awareness of politics, war, and world events. However, it was shut down in May 2021 and redirected to Item Fix.

It is believed Slater travelled to an Airbnb in the remote hilltop area of Masca, before texting a friend to say he was lost, in need of water, and that his phone’s battery was on 1% on June 17. A local woman says the teen asked her when the next bus would arrive at around 7.30am on the morning he mysteriously vanished.

When she informed Slater he’d have to wait until 10am, it is thought he attempted a gruelling 11 hour walk back to his holiday let.

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