Two years after Jay Slater vanished in Tenerife, his mother Debbie Duncan has finally received answers to the question that haunted her most: did her son suffer before he died?

The 57-year-old returned to the Spanish island for Channel 5’s Cause of Death, retracing the final journey of her 19-year-old son alongside his uncle, Glen Duncan.

But the emotional trip brought an unexpected and deeply distressing moment when Debbie went to collect Jay’s phone and complete paperwork following his death.

Jay Slater’s mum say she was ‘in horror’ when she saw photos of his dead body (Image: Facebook)

She says Spanish police accidentally showed her photographs of her son’s body.

“To my horror there were images of Jay. I thought my heart was going to stop beating.”

Debbie said she had previously considered whether she could face seeing Jay after his death, but ultimately decided she could not.

“When we had to go back to Tenerife to get paperwork from the courts and to collect his phone, to my horror there were images of Jay,” she recalled.

“Whenever people say, ‘How did you know it was Jay?’ Well, it was Jay. My beautiful boy.”

Debbie wanted to know if Jay suffered

Jay Slater’s funeral (Image: Channel 4)

Jay disappeared in Tenerife in June 2024 after travelling to the remote area of Masca with two men he had met while on holiday.

His disappearance triggered a huge search operation and, later, a flood of speculation online. Conspiracy theories surrounding his death continued to circulate for months, adding to the distress experienced by his family.

For Debbie, however, one question remained above all others.

She wanted to know what Jay experienced during his final moments.

The documentary was filmed only weeks after Debbie finally received the delayed Spanish post-mortem report. The report confirmed that Jay died after suffering catastrophic injuries in a fall into a ravine.

She subsequently discussed the findings of both the Spanish and Home Office post-mortem examinations with pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd, who conducted the UK examination.

Jay Slater’s mum travelled to Tenerife to retrace his final steps (Image: Channel 4)

Dr Shepherd explained that the injuries were so severe that Jay would probably have died immediately.

“He wanted to know how his injuries would have affected him,” Dr Shepherd said. “I was able to tell her that yes, it was an awful injury, and yes, it killed him.

“But the head injury was so severe that it probably would have killed him immediately. It was the end — there was no pain and suffering.”

For Debbie, that explanation finally addressed the fear that had stayed with her for two years: that her son might have been badly injured on the hillside and left to die alone.

Dr Shepherd said the evidence did not support that scenario.

The post-mortem findings challenged online theories

Jay’s death became the subject of intense online speculation almost immediately after his disappearance.

Some conspiracy theorists claimed he had been murdered or had become involved in criminal activity, while fabricated material and edited videos circulated across social media.

Debbie has previously spoken about the effect the trolling had on her family.

“It’s just never ended, two years on almost, and they just keep coming,” she said on This Morning earlier this year.

She said people had spread claims that Jay was involved with the mafia or drug dealing, while others targeted members of his family directly.

“They don’t know us, they don’t know our family, they don’t know Jay but yet they just judge,” Debbie said.

The official findings did not establish those theories.

Jay’s body was eventually discovered in a remote area near Masca, almost four weeks after he disappeared. A 2025 inquest concluded that he died on June 17, 2024, with injuries consistent with a heavy fall from height.

The Spanish post-mortem also found no evidence of injuries indicating strangulation or deliberate physical harm.

Jay’s final journey

The documentary takes Debbie and her brother Glen back to the Rural de Teno national park, where Jay spent the final hours of his life.

Earlier that morning, Jay had left the Casa Abuela Tina Airbnb in Masca at around 8am after spending time with friends he had met at the NRG music festival.

At 8.13am, he shared his last known location with friends through WhatsApp.

Shortly afterwards, he spoke to his friend Lucy Law.

At 8.32am, Jay told Lucy that he was thirsty and frightened.

His final call came at 8.50am. He told Lucy that he was in the “middle of nowhere” and that all he could see were mountains.

His phone battery died at 8.52am.

Jay had reportedly missed a bus and was attempting to make his way back towards Los Cristianos through the rugged terrain.

His mother had seen a Snapchat that Jay posted from the apartment less than two hours before his final calls. Looking back, she said she struggled with the thought that she might have called him herself.

“I think, ‘Why did you not ring me?’” she said.

“But then I also think, ‘Why did I not ring him when I saw his Snapchat that morning?’”

“Nobody knew what was going to happen. I need to stop feeling guilty about that. It’s really hard.”

Returning to the place where Jay left the road

As Debbie walked through the landscape where her son had become lost, she said she began to understand why he had been unable to find his way back.

She had previously struggled to understand how Jay could have reached a point where he felt completely lost despite knowing he needed to return.

But seeing the terrain for herself gave her a different perspective.

“We thought, how was it possible to get to a place where he said to Lucy, ‘I’m lost, all I can see is mountains’?” Debbie said.

“He must have been so scared, thinking, I can’t turn back.”

She described the journey through the valley as an important part of coming to terms with what had happened.

“The closure I’ve got is from the walk, knowing where he set off from, how he has seen the ocean and gone down, and where he got to before he died,” she said.

“Seeing all that now, I understand it better. That’s what closure has given me.”

Debbie breaks down while laying flowers for Jay

During the documentary, Debbie also returned to the spot where Jay left the road.

Holding flowers, she became emotional as she reflected on her son and the choices he made during his final journey.

She said she believed Jay would have regretted what happened and would have wanted to apologise to her.

“I know he’d be so sorry for the mistakes he made,” she said.

“He’d be saying, ‘I’m so sorry, Mum.’”

For Debbie, the return to Tenerife was painful, but it also gave her an opportunity to see the landscape for herself and confront the unanswered questions that had remained since Jay disappeared.

Most importantly, Dr Shepherd’s explanation gave her reassurance about her son’s final moments.

After years of confronting speculation, accusations and conspiracy theories surrounding Jay’s death, Debbie was finally given a medical explanation for what happened — and reassurance that, according to the post-mortem findings, her son did not endure a prolonged period of suffering after the fatal fall.