Video above: Suspect in Natalee Holloway disappearance taken into US custody As the main suspect in the 2005 disappearance of Natalee Holloway begins the judicial process of extradition to Alabama from Peru, her family still looks for justice after never finding their daughter's body. Here's what we know about the case.What happened in 2005?Holloway, of Mountain Brook, Alabama, went on a high school graduation trip to Aruba. She was 18 years old. She never showed up for the return flight home.Her classmates said they last saw her with Joran van der Sloot, who was 17 at the time, and two others as they left a club.The three said they dropped her off at a hotel. They were questioned and detained but freed because of a lack of evidence.Holloway's disappearance made national headlines, and her parents were active and vocal in trying to get investigators to find their daughter. The Mountain Brook community surrounded the family with support, and yellow bows were put on houses as an act of faith.Did van der Sloot ever confess?In 2007, van der Sloot published a book in which he wrote that he didn't kill Holloway and said, "I hope every day that Natalee will be found.鈥� Prosecutors alleged that he accepted $25,000 in cash from Holloway's family in exchange for promising to lead them to her body in 2010. In an affidavit, an FBI agent said he wanted to be paid $25,000 to disclose the location and another $225,000 when the remains were recovered.At one point during a recorded sting operation, van der Sloot pointed to a house where he said her body was located, but then later said in emails that he was lying about the location.More than a decade ago, he told a Peruvian judge that he would fight efforts to be extradited to the U.S.Previous Coverage: New witness in Natalee Holloway disappearanceWhy is there another murder involved?Exactly five years after Holloway vanished, another woman was killed. Stephany Flores, 21, was a business student that van der Sloot met at a casino. The day he was arrested, he was also indicted in Alabama.After fleeing Chile, he was taken to Peru, where he confessed to killing Flores. He told police he got mad when she discovered his connection to Holloway while playing online poker in his hotel room. Prosecutors also accused him of killing Flores for casino money.His lawyers argued that he killed Flores because he was triggered by the trauma from being the prime suspect in Holloway's death.Van der Sloot pleaded guilty to Flores' death in 2012 and is serving 12 years in prison. She was allegedly killed with "ferocity" and "cruelty," beaten and strangled. Did they ever consider her dead?Holloway was declared legally dead in January 2012.What is he charged with in the case of Holloway?Van der Sloot is charged with wire fraud and extortion in the case of Natalee Holloway. He has not been charged in her disappearance.Joran van der Sloot contacted a cooperating witness via email in 2010. He told them that he would accept $250,000 from Holloway's family in exchange for promising to lead them to her body, identifying the people involved in her death and explaining the circumstances of what happened.He modified his offer so that he would accept the first $25,000 to take the witness to her body, and then on recovery he would accept the rest of the money. The first $10,000 was given in cash - with another $15,000 wired. This is the basis for the wire fraud charge. How did her family respond to the extradition?"I was blessed to have had Natalee in my life for 18 years, and as of this month, I have been without her for exactly 18 years," Holloway said in a statement. "She would be 36 years old now. It has been a very long and painful journey, but the persistence of many is going to pay off. Together, we are finally getting justice for Natalee."How did the governments interact?鈥淧eru and the United States work together to expand and strengthen the substantial bilateral agenda that links our countries with the aim of bringing concrete benefits to our citizens," the Ambassador Gustavo Meza-Cuadra, Peru鈥檚 ambassador to the United States, said in a statement.The cooperation between the two country's judicial systems has been a priority for decades."We hope that this action will enable a process that will help to bring peace to Mrs. Holloway and to her family, who are grieving in the same way that the Flores family in Peru is grieving for the loss of their daughter, Stephany,鈥� said Meza-Cuadra in a statement.The U.S. Department of Justice declined to comment after the extradition order Thursday. A resolution states that U.S. diplomats presented the temporary extradition request to Peru's Ministry of Foreign Relations on Jan. 10, 2023.Video below: New developments in the Natalee Holloway mysteryThe time that van der Sloot ends up spending in the U.S. 鈥渨ill be extended until the conclusion of the criminal proceedings,鈥� including the appeal process should there be one, according to the published resolution. The resolution also states that U.S. authorities have agreed to return the suspect to the custody of Peru afterward.鈥淲e will continue to collaborate on legal issues with allies such as the United States, and many others with which we have extradition treaties,鈥� Edgar Alfredo Rebaza, the director of Peru鈥檚 Office of International Judicial Cooperation and Extraditions of the National Prosecutor鈥檚 Office, said in a statement on Wednesday.A 2001 treaty between Peru and the U.S. allows a suspect to be temporarily extradited to face trial in the other country. It requires that the prisoner 鈥渂e returned鈥� after judicial proceedings are concluded 鈥渁gainst that person, in accordance with conditions to be determined by鈥� both countries.What happened to van der Sloot while he was in jail?Joran van der Sloot found himself in the middle of a fight between rival gangs in May of 2023 while inside Challapalca Prison, where he's serving a 28-year murder sentence, defense attorney Maximo Altez told NBC News.While van der Sloot was treated in the facility's medical wing, Altez said, his client's injuries were "nothing too serious."Did van der Sloot want to be extradited to the US?Defense attorney M谩ximo Altez announced the decision of Joran van der Sloot to challenge extradition just hours after the Peruvian government confirmed the extradition would take place Thursday. Altez said van der Sloot reversed course following a meeting with Dutch diplomats. 鈥淗e does not want to be extradited to the United States of America,鈥� Altez said, adding that he intended to file a writ of habeas corpus. 鈥淗e was visited today by his embassy (representatives) who made him see the mistake he was making by being extradited without due process.鈥漈he attorney said van der Sloot was never notified of an open extradition process, and as a result, was not able to challenge it. Less than a week ago, Altez had said his client explained in a letter he did not plan to challenge the extradition.The embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Peruvian Foreign Ministry said it had 鈥渘ot received any complaint from the Netherlands regarding the case.鈥滾ess than 24 hours later, a Peruvian judge affirmed the plans for extradition.The judge鈥檚 ruling came less than 24 hours after the attorney for Dutchman Joran van der Sloot filed a writ of habeas corpus in an attempt to stop the custody transfer. Magistrate Elmer Morales informed the suspect of his decision in writing.This article contains information from The Associated Press.
Video above: Suspect in Natalee Holloway disappearance taken into US custody
As the main suspect in the 2005 disappearance of Natalee Holloway begins the judicial process of extradition to Alabama from Peru, her family still looks for justice after never finding their daughter's body.
Here's what we know about the case.
What happened in 2005?
Holloway, of Mountain Brook, Alabama, went on a high school graduation trip to Aruba. She was 18 years old. She never showed up for the return flight home.
Her classmates said they last saw her with Joran van der Sloot, who was 17 at the time, and two others as they left a club.
The three said they dropped her off at a hotel. They were questioned and detained but freed because of a lack of evidence.
APAP Photo/Leslie Mazoch
Police search a brush area next to the Marriot hotel on Palm Beach in Aruba, Tuesday, June 14, 2005, in connection with the disappearance of Alabama high school graduate Natalee Holloway on May 30. (AP Photo/Leslie Mazoch)
Holloway's disappearance made national headlines, and her parents were active and vocal in trying to get investigators to find their daughter.
The Mountain Brook community surrounded the family with support, and yellow bows were put on houses as an act of faith.
Smith's Variety
yellow bows showed support for holloway’s family in mountain brook
Did van der Sloot ever confess?
In 2007, van der Sloot published a book in which he wrote that he didn't kill Holloway and said, "I hope every day that Natalee will be found.鈥�
Prosecutors alleged that he accepted $25,000 in cash from Holloway's family in exchange for promising to lead them to her body in 2010. In an affidavit, an FBI agent said he wanted to be paid $25,000 to disclose the location and another $225,000 when the remains were recovered.
At one point during a recorded sting operation, van der Sloot pointed to a house where he said her body was located, but then later said in emails that he was lying about the location.
More than a decade ago, he told a Peruvian judge that he would fight efforts to be extradited to the U.S.
Previous Coverage: New witness in Natalee Holloway disappearance
Why is there another murder involved?
Exactly five years after Holloway vanished, another woman was killed. Stephany Flores, 21, was a business student that van der Sloot met at a casino.
The day he was arrested, he was also indicted in Alabama.
After fleeing Chile, he was taken to Peru, where he confessed to killing Flores. He told police he got mad when she discovered his connection to Holloway while playing online poker in his hotel room. Prosecutors also accused him of killing Flores for casino money.
His lawyers argued that he killed Flores because he was triggered by the trauma from being the prime suspect in Holloway's death.
Van der Sloot pleaded guilty to Flores' death in 2012 and is serving 12 years in prison. She was allegedly killed with "ferocity" and "cruelty," beaten and strangled.
Did they ever consider her dead?
Holloway was declared legally dead in January 2012.
What is he charged with in the case of Holloway?
Van der Sloot is charged with wire fraud and extortion in the case of Natalee Holloway. He has not been charged in her disappearance.
Joran van der Sloot contacted a cooperating witness via email in 2010. He told them that he would accept $250,000 from Holloway's family in exchange for promising to lead them to her body, identifying the people involved in her death and explaining the circumstances of what happened.
He modified his offer so that he would accept the first $25,000 to take the witness to her body, and then on recovery he would accept the rest of the money.
The first $10,000 was given in cash - with another $15,000 wired. This is the basis for the wire fraud charge.
How did her family respond to the extradition?
"I was blessed to have had Natalee in my life for 18 years, and as of this month, I have been without her for exactly 18 years," Holloway said in a statement. "She would be 36 years old now. It has been a very long and painful journey, but the persistence of many is going to pay off. Together, we are finally getting justice for Natalee."
Getty ImagesMark Wilson
FILE: Beth Holloway participates in the launch of the Natalee Holloway Resource Center on June 8, 2010 in Washington, DC. The non profit resource center was founded by Holloway and the National Museum of Crime & Punishment and was created to assist families of missing persons. Beth Holloway’s daughter Natalee is the Alabama teen who disappeared five years ago in Aruba.
How did the governments interact?
鈥淧eru and the United States work together to expand and strengthen the substantial bilateral agenda that links our countries with the aim of bringing concrete benefits to our citizens," the Ambassador Gustavo Meza-Cuadra, Peru鈥檚 ambassador to the United States, said in a statement.
The cooperation between the two country's judicial systems has been a priority for decades.
"We hope that this action will enable a process that will help to bring peace to Mrs. Holloway and to her family, who are grieving in the same way that the Flores family in Peru is grieving for the loss of their daughter, Stephany,鈥� said Meza-Cuadra in a statement.
The U.S. Department of Justice declined to comment after the extradition order Thursday. A resolution states that U.S. diplomats presented the temporary extradition request to Peru's Ministry of Foreign Relations on Jan. 10, 2023.
Video below: New developments in the Natalee Holloway mystery
The time that van der Sloot ends up spending in the U.S. 鈥渨ill be extended until the conclusion of the criminal proceedings,鈥� including the appeal process should there be one, according to the published resolution. The resolution also states that U.S. authorities have agreed to return the suspect to the custody of Peru afterward.
鈥淲e will continue to collaborate on legal issues with allies such as the United States, and many others with which we have extradition treaties,鈥� Edgar Alfredo Rebaza, the director of Peru鈥檚 Office of International Judicial Cooperation and Extraditions of the National Prosecutor鈥檚 Office, said in a statement on Wednesday.
A 2001 treaty between Peru and the U.S. allows a suspect to be temporarily extradited to face trial in the other country. It requires that the prisoner 鈥渂e returned鈥� after judicial proceedings are concluded 鈥渁gainst that person, in accordance with conditions to be determined by鈥� both countries.
What happened to van der Sloot while he was in jail?
Joran van der Sloot found himself in the middle of a fight between rival gangs in May of 2023 while inside Challapalca Prison, where he's serving a 28-year murder sentence, defense attorney Maximo Altez told NBC News.
While van der Sloot was treated in the facility's medical wing, Altez said, his client's injuries were "nothing too serious."
Getty ImagesERNESTO BENAVIDES/AFP
Joran Andreas Petrus van der Sloot (C), is escorted by Peruvian police as he arrives to the DIRINCRI (Criminal Investigation Direction) office in Lima on June 5, 2010. Peruvian police had been searching for van der Sloot - the main suspect in the killing of Stephany Flores Ramirez, 21, the daughter of Peruvian businessman and race car driver Ricardo Flores Chipoco - who was stopped in a taxi in Chile after entering the country from Peru last May 31.
Did van der Sloot want to be extradited to the US?
Defense attorney M谩ximo Altez announced the decision of Joran van der Sloot to challenge extradition just hours after the Peruvian government confirmed the extradition would take place Thursday. Altez said van der Sloot reversed course following a meeting with Dutch diplomats.
鈥淗e does not want to be extradited to the United States of America,鈥� Altez said, adding that he intended to file a writ of habeas corpus. 鈥淗e was visited today by his embassy (representatives) who made him see the mistake he was making by being extradited without due process.鈥�
The attorney said van der Sloot was never notified of an open extradition process, and as a result, was not able to challenge it. Less than a week ago, Altez had said his client explained in a letter he did not plan to challenge the extradition.
The embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Peruvian Foreign Ministry said it had 鈥渘ot received any complaint from the Netherlands regarding the case.鈥�
Less than 24 hours later, a Peruvian judge affirmed the plans for extradition.
The judge鈥檚 ruling came less than 24 hours after the attorney for Dutchman Joran van der Sloot filed a writ of habeas corpus in an attempt to stop the custody transfer. Magistrate Elmer Morales informed the suspect of his decision in writing.
This article contains information from The Associated Press.