A Dutch citizen who recently confessed to the murder of American student Natalee Holloway in Aruba in 2005 will be sent back to Peru this week to serve a sentence for the killing of a Peruvian woman. Joran van der Sloot will be transferred to Peru’s custody on Tuesday, as confirmed by Col. Aldo Avila, the head of Interpol for Peru.
Initially, Interpol had announced that van der Sloot would arrive in Lima, the Peruvian capital, on Monday afternoon. However, local police later informed the media that the flight had been postponed, without providing further details. The U.S. Justice Department refrained from commenting on the timing of the extradition transfer, citing safety reasons.
Van der Sloot had been temporarily extradited to the U.S. to face charges related to Holloway’s disappearance, a case that has garnered international attention for over 20 years. Just a few days ago, he confessed to killing Holloway and disposing of her remains. This admission came as part of his guilty plea for attempting to extort money from Holloway’s mother in exchange for information about the location of the body.
Although U.S. authorities lack jurisdiction to prosecute van der Sloot for the 2005 murder in Aruba, where the statute of limitations for murder has expired, the revelations have brought closure to Holloway’s family. The Dutch citizen had already been sentenced to 20 years in prison in the U.S. for extortion and wire fraud. However, under his plea agreement, this sentence will be served concurrently with his 28-year prison term in Peru for the killing of Stephany Flores in 2010.
The extradition of suspects between Peru and the U.S. is made possible by a treaty signed in 2001, allowing temporary transfers for trial purposes.
