After 18 years, the family of Natalee Holloway has received an official murder confession from Joran van der Sloot, the long-time chief suspect in Holloway's disappearance.
As a part of a plea deal resulting in one count of wire fraud against Beth Holloway, Natalee Holloway's mother, van der Sloot admitted to murdering Natalee Holloway and disposing of her body in federal court on Wednesday.
Holloway's disappearance gripped headlines for years after she went missing during a high school graduation trip in Aruba. Holloway was last seen alive leaving a bar with van der Sloot, which made him the prime suspect in her disappearance for years.
Van der Sloot was arrested several times in Aruba concerning Holloway's disappearance but was never formally charged.
In 2010, van der Sloot was federally charged for taking $25,000 from Holloway's family in exchange for information leading to her body.
Van der Sloot asked for $250,000 from Beth Holloway to reveal the location of her daughter's remains. Van der Sloot agreed to accept $25,000 to disclose the location and asked for the other $225,000 once the remains were recovered. However, van der Sloot gave a false location of Holloway's body during a recorded 2010 FBI sting that captured the extortion attempt.
Van der Sloot moved to Peru in May 2010 before he could be prosecuted for extortion. Two weeks later, he murdered Stephany Flores.
As a part of the plea deal, van der Sloot's confession to the murder will not be used against him by the U.S. Attorney, even though the United States does not have jurisdiction to prosecute Holloway's murder in Aruba. He pleaded guilty to one count of extortion and one count of wire fraud.
In addition to paying $25,100 in restitution, van der Sloot was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He is already serving a 28-year bid in Peru for Flores' murder, and his Wednesday sentence will serve concurrently with his sentence in Peru.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email craig.monger@1819news.com.
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