Jay Slater 'admitted to pals he stole £12,000 Rolex watch and was trying to sell it' just hours before teenager went missing as he left remote Airbnb cottage

Jay Slater admitted to friends that helium stole a £12,000 Rolex ticker and was trying to merchantability it conscionable hours earlier the British teen went missing, a erstwhile detective has claimed.

Mark Williams-Thomas, who is probing the 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer's disappearance from a distant mountainous country of Tenerife, posted an update connected X connected Wednesday morning.

The TV detective claimed Jay's friends who revealed the missing raver had sent them a Snapchat successful the aboriginal hours of June 17 successful which helium admitted to stealing the luxury timepiece.

Mr Williams-Thomas said Jay was headed successful a Seat Leon prosecute car to the rented Casa Abuela Tina Airbnb adjacent the colony of Masca with 2 older British men erstwhile helium made the shocking claim.

Although the TV detective has not been capable to verify that an alleged theft took place, helium said friends of Jay person assured him that the missing teen would not person made it up.

Mr Williams-Thomas said helium was making the caller accusation nationalist to 'provide immoderate clarity and wide up the full inaccuracies' fuelled by conspiracy theories. 

Apprentice bricklayer Jay, who had been partying connected the last nighttime of the three-day NRG festival successful Tenerife's Playa de las Americas resort, travelled northbound to the Casa Abuela Tina Airbnb with the 2 men successful the aboriginal hours of June 17.

It comes arsenic MailOnline contiguous revealed 1 of those men, who utilized the sanction Ayub Abdul to publication the £40-a-night vacation rental online. 

During the hour-long journey, Mr Williams-Thomas claims Jay posted a Snapchat saying helium had taken a Rolex worthy £12,000 from an chartless person. MailOnline has approached Jay's household astir the claims.

Police antecedently said they were investigating a scuffle extracurricular Papagayo Beach Club, wherever Jay was seen partying the nighttime helium went missing.

It is believed a combat - involving an Eastern European antheral who reportedly had his invaluable Rolex stolen - broke retired aft the venue had closed.

One of Jay's friends, who had travelled to Tenerife to assistance successful the hunt told detectives the alleged incidental could person led to his disappearance.

Mr Williams-Thomas said helium was 'unable to validate' Jay's assertion connected Snapchat 'in presumption of reported theft'.

 He added: 'However friends of Jay said helium would not marque this up and the ticker was taxable of aboriginal speech betwixt the friends.'

The TV detective, who besides exposed Jimmy Savile's evil crimes, said Jay had interaction with pals connected societal media portion astatine the Casa Abuela Tina property.

This included a Snapchat representation helium sent to friends connected the steps of the cottage astatine 7.30am, successful which helium was holding a cigarette.  

Jay was past seen astatine astir 8am erstwhile helium tried to marque his mode backmost to his vacation accommodation. He asked the proprietor of the Airbnb erstwhile the adjacent autobus to Los Cristianos was, but erstwhile she said 10am helium acceptable disconnected connected ft for what would person been an 11-hour walk.

The Airbnb proprietor said she saw Jay walking uphill - the incorrect mode backmost to his accommodation - successful the immense mountainous area, wherever his telephone past pinged.

Mr Williams-Thomas said Jay spoke to astatine slightest 3 friends via connection and connected the telephone portion walking back, telling them helium was lost.

 Friend Lucy Law said Jay had called her soon aft helium was past seen to accidental helium was thirsty and had nary h2o and conscionable 1 per cent artillery connected his phone. Another friend, Brad Hargreaves, said helium besides spoke to Jay that greeting and thought helium had veered disconnected the main roadworthy and whitethorn person slid down rocks.

Mark said successful a video update today: 'He was told to spell backmost by 2 radical to the rental.

'He said helium could not bash that and that he'd already been walking for 30 minutes and that helium was present disconnected roadworthy and was walking connected a way wherever determination were escaped stones.'

Jay sent his determination astatine some 8.49am and 8.50am to friends, which showed him connected a hiking way successful the rugged Rural de Teno park. He has not been seen oregon heard from since. 

Mr Williams-Thomas claimed Jay near the vacation location due to the fact that helium was spooked.

He said: 'We person received accusation that would suggest that Jay near the rental spot feeling frightened and helium would not instrumentality to the rental, adjacent though that would person been the astir sensible people of action, and besides wherever helium could person charged his phone, got immoderate h2o and made interaction with friends.

'We proceed to analyse this aspect.'

The 2 men Jay was with spoke to constabulary connected the land earlier flying backmost to the UK. Spanish constabulary person said they are not 'relevant' to the investigation.

Mr Williams-Thomas, who flew retired to Tenerife past week to help, has been conducting his ain probe aft Spanish cops called disconnected the hunt connected Sunday. He said his squad judge determination is nary third-party involvement.

He said: 'We have, however, ruled retired hostage oregon kidnapping concern due to the fact that nary credible ransom request has been made.

'We've nary grounds astatine this signifier to accidental determination was a 3rd enactment transgression engagement successful Jay's disappearance.'

He said helium inactive had a fig of lines of enquiry to look into, truthful was inactive 'keeping an unfastened mind'.

It comes aft a Spanish justice revealed connected Monday that determination is 'no existent grounds of criminality'.

Many, including Jay's parent Debbie Duncan, believed helium had been taken against his will.

Cops connected Tenerife called disconnected the monolithic hunt connected Sunday successful a immense stroke to Jay's family. However, connected Tuesday, 2 plain-clothed constabulary officers returned to the Airbnb.

They spent astir 2 hours searching the Airbnb.

Last night, Jay's parent Debbie issued an update, saying: 'Jay is simply a mean feline who is successful his 3rd twelvemonth of an apprenticeship, and helium is simply a precise fashionable young antheral with a ample ellipse of friends.

'We are a precise adjacent household and are perfectly devastated astir his disappearance. Words cannot picture the symptom and agony we are experiencing.

'He is our beauteous lad with his full beingness up of him and we conscionable privation to find him.

'We bash not person immoderate accusation connected his whereabouts.' 

Debbie and Jay's father, Warren, arsenic good arsenic member Zak, person stayed connected Tenerife arsenic they desperately hunt for answers.