Global Courant 2023-05-20 15:00:19
A spokesperson for Natalee Holloway’s mother told Fox News Digital that Joran van der Sloot’s claim that he is “caught up” in a crime is “patently untrue”.
Van der Sloot is being extradited from Peru on charges related to the 2005 disappearance of Natalee Holloway during a senior trip to Mountain Brook High School, Alabama, in Aruba.
He faces federal charges of racketeering and wire fraud after allegedly attempting to sell information about the location of Natalee Holloway’s body to Beth Holloway. Van der Sloot reportedly requested a total of $250,000 for the information, $25,000 of which was to be paid in advance and the remainder to be paid when Natalee Holloway’s remains were positively identified in Aruba.
However, prosecutors in the US allege that Van der Sloot lied to Beth Holloway’s attorney, John Q. Kelly, about the whereabouts of her daughter’s remains.
NATALEE HOLLOWAY CASE: JORAN VAN DER SLOT Extradition ‘COORDINATION’ STARTS FRIDAY, PERU INTERPOL CHIEF SAYS
File photo dated January 6, 2012, of the Dutchman Joran Van der Sloot during his preliminary hearing in the Lurigancho prison in Lima (Ernesto Benavides/AFP/GettyImages)
Van der Sloot’s attorney, Maximo Altez, told Fox News that Digital Holloway’s family “tricked” his client into getting involved with the FBI.
Altez says van der Sloot did not contact the family and was “trapped” when the Holloway family contacted him.
George Patriot Seymore, Beth Holloway’s spokesperson, told Fox News Digital that this claim is false.
“These allegations are flatly false,” Seymore said. “We look forward to taking our case to court.
The Holiday Inn resort in Noord, Aruba, May 12, 2023. The Holiday Inn resort is where Natalee Holloway stayed in 2005 before she disappeared. (Mega for Fox News Digital)
“As this is an active legal matter, we are limited in the information we can share at this time, but we plan to provide additional information as soon as possible.”
Plans for the extradition appear to have gained momentum following Van der Sloot’s decision not to appeal his transfer to the United States to face charges, Altez said.
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Natalee Holloway was last seen alive in Aruba on a senior trip to Mountain Brook High School. (FBI)
Seymore said the FBI will handle the extradition. The FBI declined to comment.
 
Federal Judge Karon Bowdre withdrew from the case on Wednesday and Judge Anna Manasco was assigned to the case. The court hearings will take place in Birmingham, Alabama.
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Beth Holloway fights back tears as she participates in the launch of the Natalee Holloway Resource Center on June 8, 2010 in Washington, D.C. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
Van der Sloot faces a prison sentence in Peru for the murder of 21-year-old Stephany Flores in 2010. His original sentence was 28 years, but he was given more time due to a drug smuggling scandal in prison.
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A man points Dutchman Joran Van der Sloot, left, to his seat at Lurigancho Prison in Lima, January 11, 2012. (Reuters/Pilar Olivares)
“I was blessed to have had Natalee in my life for 18 years, and as of this month I have been exactly 18 years without her. She would be 36 years old now,” Beth Holloway said. “It has been a very long and painful journey, but the persistence of many will pay off. Together we will finally get justice for Natalee.”
Fox News’ Michael Ruiz and Haley Chi-Sing contributed to this report.
Adam Sabes is a writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to [email protected] and on Twitter @asabes10.
