Jay Slater’s family has reportedly been sent “vile threats and ransom demands” about the missing 19-year-old.
According to former detective Mark Williams-Thomas, who flew to Tenerife to join the search effort for the apprentice bricklayer from Lancashire, relatives of Jay have been the target of cruel online trolls.
“So much fake content has been created in the Jay Slater case – mocked up chat, messages, pics”, Williams-Thomas, who worked on the Madeline McCann case, said. “It’s a very different world we live in today with social media and online detectives.
“Overwhelming response from people has been very positive people just wanting to help, even though most have no direct info, just what they have read, seen or think.
“Also a number of people making vile threats and ransom demands (all checked out and have no credibility).”
This comes as police called off the search for Jay yesterday, after nearly two weeks of scouring the area where he was last seen.
“Jay’s family can’t help thinking the trolls have won and that they have got the way”, a source close to Jay’s family told The Sun. “So many people have been putting horrible messages out there which has only added to the family’s torment.”
Since Jay has gone missing, countless Facebook groups, TikTok videos, and more have been created to share conspiracy theories and fake, unfounded information about the case.
While search efforts have been stopped, Jay’s family have said they are not giving up.
Close family friend Rachel Hargreaves, who joined Jay’s relatives in Tenerife, said: “Nothing has changed. We will continue to search for him.”
“The police have put considerable resources into searching for Jay and of course, it is very disappointing for the family that the search by the police has now ended,” Williams-Thomas told The Mirror.
“I have advised the family to use the GoFundMe money to bring in a large team of experts to flood the area from where we know Jay last was.”