Briton Who Had Teenager Visit on Airbnb Before Disappearance Claims He 'Left Home Alive'

Lina Portman3 days ago

0 2 minutes read

The owner of an Airbnb visited by Jay Slater hours before he disappeared said he left the house alive.

Ayub Qassim invited the 19-year-old back to his rented holiday home after a rave in Tenerife, hours before he disappeared on June 17.

Qassim, who is believed to be back at the family flat in Barking, east London, is believed to have met Jay through friends.

The 31-year-old booked a £40-a-night holiday rental online under the name Ayub Abdul.

Jay Slater at the Airbnb where he was last seen

PA/Getty

A sign near Masca where Jay Slater was last seen

Getty

Qassim told the Daily Mail: “The only comment I have is that Jay came home alive and he left alive. I let the guy stay at my house because he had nowhere to go, his friends had all left him.

“I know Jay, through my friends, I'm not going to bring someone home if I don't know them. I do this guy a favor and now my face is all over the news. It's kind of crazy. I didn't even do anything.”

Asked how he knew Jay and what he thought of the conspiracy theories surrounding his disappearance, Qassim said: “Everybody knows everybody. I’m not going to slander anybody. He’s a cool guy, Jay. He’s got no problem with me, I’ve got no problem with him or his mates.”

“If I had a fight with him, would he come to my house? There was no problem. You saw the last pictures of him with his red blanket around him. I don't know if he had problems elsewhere because I don't know him very well, I only know him through friends.”

LATEST NEWS ON THE DISAPPEARANCE OF JAY SLATER

Airbnb's Casa Abuela Tina in Masca, Tenerife, where Jay Slater resided before his disappearance

Pennsylvania

It comes after Jay's father Warren questioned why his teenage son ended up in a remote Airbnb with “two grown men” hours before he went missing, adding he believed police were withholding information from the family.

He said: “I'm past the point of sadness and I'm angry, if that makes any sense. I'm angry because nothing happened. The lack of information prompted Warren to become a detective himself.

“The police here are doing their own investigations. They're not telling us much, they're not telling us anything, we're in the dark… All I'm doing is being a bit of a Colombo myself. I mean, he could be here, you never know, but as a father, I don't want him to be.

“You don’t just disappear like that. He’s a young boy, he’s fit. He’s fitter than all of us put together.”

Volunteer firefighter searches for young British man Jay Slater in Juan Lopez ravine near Masca

Reuters

Last weekend, Spanish police said the investigation was over but the case was still open.

A spokesman said: “The search operation is no longer active, but the case is still open and there are several lines of enquiry.”

Dozens of police officers, rescuers and firefighters have been on the lookout in the steep valley ever since, using dogs, drones and a helicopter.

“The search lasted several days because it is a rocky area and difficult to access,” the spokesman said.

Volunteers joined police and other rescue workers to form a team of more than 30 people who combed the area on Saturday.

Lina Portman

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