Aruba police pursue new evidence in Holloway case

Tue Nov 18, 2008 4:04 PM EST
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SAN JUAN — A new witness has come forward in the 2005 disappearance of American teenager Natalee Holloway in Aruba, and prosecutors said Tuesday they are seeking more evidence against the only remaining suspect.

A woman told Dutch police this month that Joran van der Sloot confessed to her years ago that he was involved in Holloway's disappearance, according to Ann Angela, a spokeswoman for the Aruba Prosecutors' Office.

But the Dutch Caribbean island's chief prosecutor said authorities still lack proof they need to convict Van der Sloot, who has been arrested twice and released for lack of evidence.

"After three years of investigating, it is very, very difficult to find that evidence," prosecutor Hans Mos told The Associated Press. "We have to be realistic."

Holloway, an 18-year-old from Mountain Brook, Alabama, was last seen in May 2005 leaving a bar in the Aruban capital Oranjestad with Van der Sloot on the final night of a high school graduation trip to the island. Extensive searches have found no trace of her.

Investigators reopened the case earlier this year based on hidden-camera recordings made by a Dutch TV crime show. On the video, Van der Sloot says Holloway collapsed on the beach after they left the bar and that he called a friend to dump her body at sea.

The new witness, once a friend of Van der Sloot, confirmed that he gave her roughly the same account shortly after Holloway's disappearance. But Mos said her statement does not bring authorities any closer to resolving the case.

He also said the witness would lack credibility in court unless she explains why she waited so long to come forward.

Attorneys for Van der Sloot did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment and there was no answer at his parents' home in Aruba.

Van der Sloot was last known to be living in Thailand but his current whereabouts are a "mystery," Angela said.

Angela said Aruban authorities hope to decide by the end of this year whether to prosecute Van der Sloot or close the case for good.

Natalee Holloway's mother, Beth Holloway, did not immediately return a telephone call Tuesday seeking comment.

© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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{"commentId":4115291,"authorDomain":"dhardy8207"}
Southern Bell

Moral of the story; Watch who you drink with, leave with, and make out with on a strange beach in another country!

{"commentId":4115291,"threadId":"422656","contentId":"2125605","authorDomain":"dhardy8207"}
    Reply#1 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 5:12 PM EST
    {"commentId":4116599,"authorDomain":"catndahat"}
    barito

    Southern Bell u r rite!!! I'm a black male and I like to hang out, but leaving with a woman I don't know without the bartender knowing who I left with is OUT!. You never know...Its a tragedy, but what I don't get is the family tried to play her like she was a Polly Pure Bred, why did all the other girls go back to their rooms at a decent hour and went home? I say  no more.........

    {"commentId":4116599,"threadId":"422656","contentId":"2125605","authorDomain":"catndahat"}
      Reply#2 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 6:52 PM EST
      {"commentId":4124359,"authorDomain":"dhardy8207"}
      Southern Bell

      Barito,

      I live in Birmingham where this girl was from.  She does come from a prominent family and was a "level headed" young lady by all accounts of those who know her.  The only thing I can say is, sometimes these young girls don't see danger.  They are immediately infactuated with a young man's attention and especially since they met in a very public popular place,  I'm sure the fact that he (the suspect) is very well known on the island probably caused her to drop her guard. 

      I have to caution my daughter not to leave a drink unattended while in the clubs and don't except a drink from a guy who brings it to you, I've always taught her to make sure she sees the drink come from the bartender.

      Too many young ladies go missing and most of the time had they only been thinking they would have taken precautions. It is just really sad this family is being taken through this all over again.

      {"commentId":4124359,"threadId":"422656","contentId":"2125605","authorDomain":"dhardy8207"}
        #2.1 - Wed Nov 19, 2008 11:58 AM EST
        Reply
        {"commentId":4116874,"authorDomain":"greenarcher170"}
        bluearcher

        The list of mistakes...in a foreign country, underage drinking, drunk, with strangers, in a strangers car, left her group, missing chaperones, no bed check, poor investigation, etc.

        An altogether preventable tragedy.

        {"commentId":4116874,"threadId":"422656","contentId":"2125605","authorDomain":"greenarcher170"}
          Reply#3 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 7:15 PM EST
          {"commentId":4117567,"authorDomain":"anrkist"}
          Anrkist

          Must be another slow news week.

          {"commentId":4117567,"threadId":"422656","contentId":"2125605","authorDomain":"anrkist"}
            Reply#4 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 8:25 PM EST
            {"commentId":4124420,"authorDomain":"dhardy8207"}
            Southern Bell

            Actually no this is new news.  They have caught the original suspect in her disappearance involving himself in human trafficing, also new witnesses have come forward that place his father in the area that night, which if it is true he lied before. 

            But he is a judge in the Netherlands and is being rigorously protected.  I quess if her family had more money or she was connected to someone of power then our government would be more involved in bringing this to justice. I bet if this was the other way around and one of their citizens went missing here they would want a thorough investigation and charges brought no matter who was involved.

            {"commentId":4124420,"threadId":"422656","contentId":"2125605","authorDomain":"dhardy8207"}
              #4.1 - Wed Nov 19, 2008 12:02 PM EST
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              {"commentId":4118740,"authorDomain":"dennisclatham"}
              Dennis C. LathamDeleted
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