Peru has given the green light for the extradition of Joran van der Sloot, a suspect in the 2005 disappearance of Natalee Holloway in Aruba, to the United States. Van der Sloot has been serving a 28-year prison sentence in Peru for the murder of a Peruvian woman, and was previously indicted in the US for extortion and wire fraud in relation to the Holloway case.
Van der Sloot was a Dutch citizen living in Aruba at the time of Holloway’s disappearance, and has long been a suspect in the case. Holloway was an 18-year-old American tourist who went missing while on a trip to the Caribbean island in May 2005. Despite extensive searches and investigations, her body has never been found and no one has been charged with her murder.
Van der Sloot was arrested twice in connection with the case, but was released due to lack of evidence. He later confessed to killing a Peruvian woman in 2010 and was sentenced to prison in Peru. He has also been linked to several other crimes, including the extortion of Holloway’s mother, Beth Holloway.
The decision to allow van der Sloot’s extradition comes after a long legal battle in Peru, where he had been fighting the extradition on the grounds that it violated his human rights. The case has been closely watched by both the US and Dutch governments, as well as by the families of both Holloway and his Peruvian victim.
It remains to be seen when van der Sloot will be extradited, as the process can take several months. However, the decision is a major development in the long-running investigation into Holloway’s disappearance, and may finally bring some closure to her family.