Jay Slater’s final words have been revealed as his friend told an inquest he called her from the ‘middle of the mountains’ before his phone ran out of battery.
The 19-year-old, from Oswaldtwistle in Lancashire, had been to the NRG music festival with friends at the Papagayo nightclub in Playa de las Americas when he went missing in June last year.
An inquest into Jay’s death resumed on Thursday after it was adjourned in May so witnesses could be traced.
According to his friend Lucy Law, Jay had refused to go home following a night out so she got a taxi home with her friend Mr Hodgson.
Ms Law – who gave evidence remotely via an autolink – said the next thing she heard was a phone call from Mr Hodgson at 8.30am which woke her up.
He told her Jay was ‘in the middle of nowhere’ and his phone was on one per cent battery.
Her first reaction was that he was ‘having me on’ but Mr Hodgson insisted he was being ‘serious’.
She called Jay, speaking to him for just over two minutes.
Asked by the coroner about their conversation, Ms Law said she asked him: ‘What on earth are you doing, where are you?’
He replied: ‘I’m just in the middle of the mountains.’
Jay had attempted a 14-hour walk home the morning after taking drugs and alcohol on the night out, Preston Coroner’s Court heard.
Jay Slater’s close friend Lucy Law (right) gave evidence at an inquest remotely via an autolink
Jay Slater (pictured with his mother) had been to the NRG music festival with friends at the Papagayo nightclub in Playa de las Americas when he went missing in June last year
Jay’s friend Lucy Law was among those who could not be traced to give evidence in May
Saying there are ‘mountains everywhere’ in Tenerife, Ms Law said: ‘I’m panicking, his phone’s on 1 per cent.’
She said Jay said he needed a drink and asked: ‘Are cactuses poisonous or what?’
‘I said cactuses are the least of your worries.
‘You need to go back to wherever you’ve just come from and stay there.’
But she said Jay refused, saying ‘I can’t go back there’. Ms Law said she didn’t believe the reason Jay wouldn’t go back to the Airbnb was that ‘something bad’ had happened there as he would have mentioned it.
‘He was telling me all the problems about his leg and needing a drink.
‘I feel if there was something else going on in the Airbnb he probably would have said.
‘I feel if there was a reason, some conflict… he probably would have said that first.’
Ms Law agreed that the drugs Jay had taken would have affected his decision-making and made him ‘more confident’.
Ms Law said that on the evening before Jay disappeared – June 16 – she had been watching the England match with Mr Hodgson.
Later they were joined by Jay and Mr Geoghegan.
Jay’s mother Debbie Duncan arrives at Preston Coroner’s Court today for the inquest
Jay’s brother Zak Slater (right) arrives at Preston Coroner’s Court for the inquest today
She said Jay was ‘visibly intoxicated’ but not ‘in a state’.
Both she and Mr Geoghegan went back to their apartments after the football to change, she said.
At around midnight they met up with Jay and Mr Geoghegan outside Papagayo for the last night of the festival.
Ms Law said the club was ‘very busy’ inside, ‘quite hot’ and overcrowded.
Asked by the coroner about Jay’s demeanour at that point, she said he had clearly ‘taken something’ but was not ‘visibly mangled’.
Jay was ‘always on a buzz’, she added.
At around 2am Jay said he was going to the toilet and the bar. When he hadn’t returned after about half an hour she went to look for him but could not see him anywhere in the nightclub, she said, and he didn’t reply to phone messages.
Ms Law said she and her friends left Payagayo at around 2am to look for Jay on Veronica’s Strip, saying he was a ‘social butterfly’ who might have befriended a different group of people.
She said Jay sent messages naming other venues he had gone to, but she drew a blank each time she tried to find him.
Asked by the coroner why she was so ‘worried’, Ms Law said she had been to Tenerife several times and ‘I wouldn’t want any of my mates roaming around on their own’.
She was questioned about a message she sent Jay asking where he was, adding: ‘If you’re not there this time I’m going to be f****** fuming.’
Ms Law said Jay kept replying saying where he was ‘and then vanishing into thin air’.
Jay’s mother Debbie Duncan previously pleaded with the coroner to summon witnesses
Finally, while she was ordering food from the Magic Mike’s takeaway, she was forwarded a Snapchat image showing where Jay was.
She said she called him and ordered: ‘Stay there and don’t move.’
While Mr Hodgson waited for her food order she ran back to the Strip and found Jay at the bottom of some steps.
Ms Law said she told him: ‘I’ve been looking for you for ages.’
‘He was laughing his head off,’ she added.
Ms Law said she told Jay they had ‘all been worried about you’.
‘He found the whole situation funny.’
She said Jay told her: ‘There’s no way I’m going home.’
By now she wanted to go back to her apartment, so she and Mr Hodgson got a taxi while Mr Geoghegan went to meet Jay.
Asked by the coroner if she had the impression Jay was ‘frightened’ in any way, she replied: ‘Definitely not.’
‘He was just enjoying his night as he usually would.’
Friend Bradley Geoghegan said Jay had taken ecstasy pills, and possibly ketamine, along with cocaine and alcohol, on the night out before he disappeared.
The next morning, Mr Geoghegan said he got a video call from Jay, who was walking along a road and was still ‘under the influence’, the court heard.
Mr Geoghegan said: ‘I said put your maps on to see how far you were. It was like a 14-hour walk or an hour drive. I said, “Get a taxi back”, then he just goes, “I will ring you back”.’
Coroner Dr James Adeley asked the witness: ‘Did you get the impression he was in any way threatened or fearful, or under duress in a difficult situation?’
Mr Geoghegan replied: ‘No. I think he probably got there and thought, “Why am I here?”, sobered up and decided to come back.’
The hearing in May heard from a number of witnesses, including toxicology expert Dr Stephanie Martin.
The court heard analysis showed traces of drugs, including cocaine, ketamine and ecstasy, along with alcohol, were found in Jay’s body.
Home Office pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd said his post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as head injuries, and Jay’s body showed no evidence of restraint or assault, with the pattern of injuries consistent with a fall from a height.
The inquest continues.
