Jay Slater disappearance is NOT unusual - at least 11 other tourists have gone missing in Tenerife in six months

Jay Slater went missing last month
PA/Handout
George Bunn

By George Bunn


Published: 09/07/2024

- 15:54

Updated: 09/07/2024

- 16:11

Tourists have gone missing from the island over the last 40 years

Tenerife has been under the spotlight in recent weeks following the disappearance of British teenager Jay Slater.

The 19-year-old from Oswaldtwistle, near Lancashire, has not been seen since the morning of June 17 with his mysterious disappearance has been the subject of huge interest.


However, the holiday hotspot is no stranger to missing British tourists as at least 11 other tourists have gone missing on the island in the last six months.

Many of those who have gone missing were last seen in the vibrant Playa de las Americas resort.

Jay Slater went missing last month\u200b

Jay Slater went missing last month

PA/Handout

One of those who disappeared from the resort was 28-year-old Ryan Cooney from Ireland. He vanished after he was allegedly attacked and robbed while holidaying in Tenerife last November. After several days of desperate appeals and his family flying to Tenerife, Ryan suddenly reappeared on November 13.

His friend James Burke said: "Words can't describe how I'm feeling right now. This is unreal, this doesn't happen. I'm so happy. Thank you so much to everyone, my best mate is found safe, he's coming home."

Meanwhile, 34-year-old Peter Wilson travelled to the island on March 22, 2019, from Dublin and checked into the Malibu Park Hotel, Costa Adeja, in Santa Crus. He returned to his hotel in the afternoon before heading back to the party resort that evening. Peter was last spotted close to where the taxi dropped him off before vanishing without a trace.

His devastated family travelled to Tenerife to try and find him and launched a Facebook group. Amid fears he had been kidnapped or murdered, Peter's body was eventually discovered after it emerged he fell down a steep drop next to a shopping centre.

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:

Kevin Ainley

Lancashire Police

Kevin Ainley vanished from the island over 20 years ago on June 14, 2004. The 24-year-old from Lancashire, went missing in June 2004, having moved to Playa de las Americas in March that year. He was working as a promoter at the Sportsman bar in a popular area known as 'the patch'.

Ainley had spent the night in bars and clubs with a friend before they went for dinner at Merlin's Chinese buffet restaurant. He was last spotted walking towards the Sportsman bar after finishing the meal. He did not turn up for his shift and has not been seen since.

Billy Bennett, from Holborn in London, was just 18 when he disappeared during a holiday in Tenerife on December 1, 1985. Known to frequent the Las Americas resort and the Sergeant Peppers nightclub, Billy was described as looking ‘worse for wear’ when a friend flew out to join him.

He had nowhere to stay, and then he vanished. His location remains unknown.

\u200bMarc Francis Olbrechts

Marc Francis Olbrechts is one of those who has gone missing

SOS Desaparecidos Association

Marek Siedlecki was reported missing on June 14 - three days before Jay Slater vanished. The Polish national was said to be heading towards Lanzarote, where he intended to fly back home.

Polish media reports that Marek was sailing his boat Nautis and was last spotted in the water.

Marc Francis Olbrechts, from Belgium, disappeared on April 24. He was last seen in Adeje, southwest Tenerife.

Mother and son Natalia Belavus and Vladimir Marcella from Belarus, were reported missing on March 27. The SOS Desaparecidos Association has since said they suspect the case to be 'parental abduction'. Natalia, 28, and her son have been pictured on social media since, according to local reports.

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