Will Joran van der Sloot ever be convicted for Natalee’s murder? A lawyer shares his opinion

After Taken: Natalee Holloway on Netflix, a legal expert has weighed in on whether Joran van der Sloot will ever be convicted for her murder. 

The 18-year-old, from Mountain Brook, Alabama, went missing on 30th May, 2005, on the final night of a high school graduation trip in Aruba.

Dutchman Joran van der Sloot, who was one of the last people to see her alive, was the biggest suspect for almost two decades. In 2023, 18 years after her disappearance, Joran confessed to her murder as part of a plea deal in a separate extortion and wire fraud case. 

He confessed to killing Natalee Holloway with a cinder block and dumping her body in the ocean after she refused his sexual advances. However, Joran, who is currently still serving a 28-year sentence in Peru for killing Stephany Flores Ramírez, hasn’t been prosecuted. 

In the eyes of the law, a confession doesn’t automatically mean a conviction. It’s far more complicated than that. 

“Could he still be convicted? Yes, absolutely. Will he? That’s a whole different question,” criminal defence attorney Peter S. Christiansen told The Tab, who has extensive experience with complex homicide cases.

Credit: Netflix

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“The man did confess to killing her, but a confession is not a conviction. You don’t get to skip the legal process just because someone finally admits to something that was long suspected. And let’s be clear, you don’t need a body to prosecute a murder. But without one there’s no autopsy, no physical examination of the victim and a hell of a lot more pressure on prosecutors to find independent evidence to back up this confession.”

“The real problem here is, you can have the strongest confession in the world, but if you cannot legally bring the charges, there is no case.”

The fact that Van der Sloot’s crimes have occurred across three different countries, which all have different legal systems, also makes it a difficult and unique case. 

“This happened in Aruba. He was extradited to the US for an extortion case and is now serving a lengthy prison sentence in Peru. Dutch and Aruban authorities face a legal maze before anyone gets near a courtroom for a murder trial,” Christiansen continued. 

“So would I rule out a conviction, no. But I’m also not going to promise this family justice that the legal system might not be able to deliver. The public may very well consider this case solved. But knowing who committed a murder and having the legal authority to convict that person are two different things here.”

Joran is due to be released from jail in 2045. 

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