BIRMINGHAM, Ala. —
In a surprising turn of events, it seems unlikely that Joran van der Sloot will ever be held accountable for the murder of Natalee Holloway. He not only got away with the slaying, but also managed to profit from it by heartlessly scamming her mother. However, Beth Holloway, Natalee’s mother, has found a sense of peace in knowing that her “never-ending nightmare” has finally come to an end. The imperfect plea deal that named Natalee’s killer may be the best chance the Holloway family will ever have at achieving justice.
Van der Sloot has pleaded guilty to extortion and wire fraud as part of a plea agreement that requires him to reveal everything he knows about Natalee Holloway’s murder in Aruba. Although the deal does not guarantee that he will be locked up for the murder, it does provide an invaluable commodity to the Holloway family — answers. “I don’t think any victim’s family will ever feel that any amount of time is enough,” Holloway said. “But I needed the answers about what happened to Natalee.”
While the fact that there is a statute of limitations for murder in Aruba may come as a shock to many Americans, it was always at the forefront of then-U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance’s mind. Vance, who brought the extortion case against van der Sloot in 2010, noted, “Laws in other countries can be very different than ours, particularly when it comes to statutes of limitation and the length of sentences. We were always aware of this in this particular case.”
Natalee Holloway went missing on May 30, 2005, during a vacation in Aruba. The next day, Beth Holloway unknowingly came face to face with van der Sloot at the Holiday Inn. Little did she know that he would later admit to the murder 18 years later. “I was face to face with my daughter’s killer that night. But I didn’t know it,” Holloway said. “I thought I was face to face with a suspect who was involved in her disappearance.”
Five years after Natalee’s disappearance, van der Sloot cruelly targeted Beth Holloway with a scam. He requested $250,000 in exchange for information about the location of Natalee’s remains. In May 2010, Holloway’s attorney, John Q. Kelly, traveled to Aruba to make the deal. Beth Holloway made a down payment of $25,100 for completely bogus information regarding her daughter’s whereabouts. Though van der Sloot initially got away with the hoax, he was later indicted in the U.S. in 2010 on charges of extortion and wire fraud. It was only after he was imprisoned for the murder of Peruvian student Stephany Flores that led to his extradition and eventual confession to Natalee Holloway’s murder.
Beth Holloway expressed her gratitude to a Washington, D.C. public relations firm, Patriot Strategies, for helping facilitate communication between the U.S. and Peru, resulting in van der Sloot’s extradition. The extradition treaty between Washington and Lima, signed in 2001, played a crucial role in this process.
Now that van der Sloot has finally confessed, Beth Holloway feels more at ease and looks forward to spending time with her adult son and grandchildren. “Today was a victory,” she said. “Tomorrow’s a new day.”
Reported by Sam Brock and Juliette Arcodia from Birmingham, and David K. Li from New York City.
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