Jay Slater hunt will go on, searcher tells This Morning and says he hasn't 'given up hope'
The hunt for missing teenager Jay Slater will continue, a searcher has insisted in a new interview on This Morning. Spanish police called off the search in Tenerife for missing Jay, 19, on Sunday, 30 June.
As the search entered its thirteenth day, police called it off but insisted the case remains open. Jay went missing two weeks ago near Buenavista del Norte, Tenerife. He had gone to Tenerife on holiday with friends to attend the NRG festival.
Amateur mountaineer and TikTok star Paul Arnott, 29, jetted to Tenerife to help with the search for Jay two weeks ago. Despite police calling off their search, he has insisted he aims to continue looking and has booked a further two weeks in Tenerife to do so.
Speaking via video link on This Morning on Monday, 1 July, Paul told hosts Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley he had vowed to stay in Tenerife until he finds Jay. He also gave an update on his search, saying he's in contact with people who can help.
"It's a difficult situation for me. I've said since day one, I'm going to stay until we find Jay," Paul, who hails from Scotland, stated when asked how long he will remain abroad for.
He went on: "I've just booked another two weeks here, so I'm definitely booked in for another two weeks. I'm just going to keep doing my thing. There's little clues that are coming about, there's a few things that I'm following. There's certain people who are really, really intelligent with stuff like this, who I'm conversing with, and it's just helping the whole situation. So, we'll see what happens with some more time."
Ben, 49, then asked if he'd "given up hope" of finding Jay yet. Paul defiantly responded: "No chance."
Paul, who boasts thousands of followers on TikTok, decided to join the search as he said his mountaineering experience would allow him to explore locations the rescue teams may struggle to reach. Jay vanished in a rural area, where the terrain is rocky and uneven.
Paul has criticised Spanish police's efforts in searching for Jay, having branded them "ridiculous" in a video. He voiced his exasperation over the delay in search operations on Sunday, 30 June, saying he was tempted to take his "name off the list" and head off to do "his own thing" as he'd been "waiting ages".
