Expert points out why missing Briton Ben Ross has been found but Jay Slater has not

There was a collective sigh of relief on the island of Mallorca when a young British man who had been reported missing was found safe.

The family of 26-year-old Benjamin Ross released a statement on Tuesday (July 23) confirming that Ben had been robbed, leaving him with “no money, no phone and no way to contact anyone”. His mother Felix Robinson expressed her immense relief, describing her son, a trainee solicitor from Wigan, Greater Manchester, as “withered but alive”.

Ben had been out of touch since July 10, prompting particular concern from Felix’s mother, who said she had received a worrying text from him suggesting he was not in a good mental state. However, the situation took a positive turn on Tuesday when Ben headed to the British consulate in Palma, with his family now prioritizing his recovery.

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“I am so incredibly grateful for all the help and support I have received,” said an overjoyed Felix. “Everyone was really incredible. We are so relieved to have found him and are now focused on getting him back to full health and home safe and well.”

While Ben’s safe return is encouraging, it’s not completely out of the ordinary statistically, one expert suggests. However, his case has attracted further attention due to heightened vigilance over the safety of Britons abroad, particularly in light of the tragic disappearance of Jay Slater, reports The Mirror.

But what made Slater’s case stand out?

Jay Slater – an unusual case

Lancashire teenager Jay sparked much speculation online after he disappeared in the rustic village of Masca, Tenerife. The internet erupted with theories suggesting foul play after Jay’s last known communication was a text message to his girlfriend Lucy, in which he said he was returning to his accommodation, an arduous 11-hour journey under the Spanish sun.

In his message to Lucy, Jay said he missed the bus, suffered a cut on his leg and was “lost in the mountains”. Adding fuel to the speculative fire was the knowledge that she had been staying at an Airbnb with two older men from the UK prior to her disappearance.

On 16 July, a local court confirmed the discovery of a dead body, later confirmed as Slater, showing injuries related to a fall; however, the medical examiner has not yet declared the official cause of death. The purpose behind Jay’s excursion into the dangerous and unforgiving terrain of rural, mountainous Tenerife is uncertain.

Despite public opinion, criminal involvement in missing-person cases is statistically unlikely, according to Charlie Hedges, one of Britain’s leading missing-persons specialists. He told the Mirror: “Most people who are missing are just missing in one context or another.”

According to the UK charity Missing People, around 74 per cent of missing person reports for adults are resolved within the first 24 hours. But in Jay Slater’s case it took much longer to discover what happened.

Only three percent remain unoccupied for more than a week and one percent for more than a month. Reflecting on those statistics, Mr Hedges said: “(Maybe) they got lost or they got home late or maybe, in the case of Jay Slater, there’s an existential injury,” he also spoke about the rarity of kidnappings or other acts malicious being the cause.

However, he insisted on the need to explore all potential scenarios to determine what could have happened.

Mr Hedges also pointed to the multitude of cases that never come to public attention every year in the UK. While Jay’s disappearance might seem notable, it’s just one of about 320,000 incidents reported each year.

When dealing with missing persons cases, officers must strive to identify those “likely to be at significant risk of harm”, Mr Hedges added. He explained that police must first “develop a full understanding of the circumstances of the disappearance and the individual who has gone missing to try to assess what the likelihood of risk is”.

Mr Hedges is currently lending his expertise to Jack O’Sullivan’s family. The 22-year-old Bristolian has not been seen since leaving a party in Bristol on March 2.

Jack’s mother, Catherine O’Sullivan, expressed her displeasure with police efforts in the search for her son, as reported by the BBC. “I have little faith in what was done,” she said.

Avon and Somerset Police responded, saying they had carried out “extensive searches on both land and water using specialist units” and were adhering to expert guidance.

The Slater family echoed a similar complaint. Warren Slater, Jay’s father, went so far as to call for Interpol’s involvement after Spanish authorities called off their search efforts after two weeks.

However, it later emerged that the police had not actually stopped their searches, but instead hoped to reduce intense public scrutiny and speculation.