Topline
Joran van der Sloot admitted to killing American teenager Natalee Holloway nearly 20 years ago and disclosed details on how he killed her Wednesday, part of a plea agreement as van der Sloot—of the last people to be seen with Holloway before she disappeared in Aruba in 2005—was sentenced to 20 years in prison for extortion.
Joran van der Sloot was required to admit he killed Holloway and disclose how he murdered the … [+]
Key Facts
Van der Sloot, who was extradited to the U.S. earlier this year, pleaded guilty to extortion and wire fraud charges Wednesday, after an Alabama jury indicted him for extorting Beth Holloway, Natalee’s mother, for $250,000 for information about how her daughter died and a promise to lead the family to Holloway’s body.
As part of the plea agreement, van der Sloot was required to disclose how Holloway died and how he disposed of her body—he explained that after Holloway rebuffed his sexual advances, he used a nearby cinderblock to “smash her head in with it completely,” and then pushed her body into the ocean, court records show.
Beth Holloway said van der Sloot’s confession was backed up with a polygraph test, saying at a press conference Wednesday he is “no longer the suspect in my daughter’s murder, he is the killer.”
Van der Sloot, who was extradited from Peru to the U.S. in May, was sentenced to 240 months with credit for the time he served in U.S. custody; his sentence will run concurrently with his Peruvian sentence, according to a reporter from WBRC, a Birmingham, Alabama, Fox affiliate.
The judge overseeing the case said that regardless when van der Sloot’s Peruvian sentence ends he must return to the U.S. and serve the rest of his 20 year sentence, as well as pay Beth Holloway restitution, WBRC reported.
Crucial Quote
“You have finally admitted that you murdered her… You terminated her potential, her dreams and possibilities when you bludgeoned her to death,” Beth Holloway said while speaking at Wednesday’s sentencing hearing, WBRC reported. “Even though you have finally confessed and confirmed that you are my daughter’s killer you can’t be tried here for her murder.”
Key Background
Holloway, 18 at the time, vanished while on a trip to Aruba with her high school class from Alabama. She disappeared after spending a night at a nightclub with friends. Holloway’s disappearance captivated many and dominated headlines around the world leading to true-crime podcasts, books and movies that have remained of interest for the past 20 years. Authorities said she was last seen leaving a nightclub in a car with van der Sloot and two other men on May 30, 2005. After Holloway disappeared, authorities said van der Sloot and two Surinamesse brothers were suspects. They were detained and charged in 2007, but Holloway’s body was never found and the charges were ultimately dropped. An Alabama judge declared Holloway legally dead in 2012.
Surprising Fact
Van Der Sloot was previously in Peru serving a 28 year sentence for the 2010 murder of a 21-year-old woman named Stephany Flores, who was killed five years after Holloway disappeared.
Further Reading
Natalee Holloway Suspect Faces Extradition And New Charges (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/10/18/natalee-holloway-murder-suspect-admits-to-killing-teen-sentenced-to-20-years-for-extortion/