Joran van der Sloot claims that Natalee Holloway’s mother ‘cheated’ him in the FBI sting
Joran van der Sloot has made the bizarre accusation that Natalee Holloway’s mother “cheated” on him in an FBI sting that led to his indictment in connection with the unsolved murder case, DailyMail.com can reveal.
The convicted killer, currently in prison in Peru for an unrelated murder, is the prime suspect in Natalee’s disappearance from the Caribbean island of Aruba in 2005 when she was 18.
The teenager was last seen leaving a nightclub with Van der Sloot and two of his friends. Her body was never found and she was declared legally dead in 2012.
Van der Sloot now faces extradition to the US on federal racketeering charges.
He is accused of promising to lead Natalee’s family to her body in exchange for $250,000 in 2010.
Joran van der Sloot is the main suspect in the unsolved murder case of Natalee Holloway
van der Sloot faces extradition to the US for extortion after allegedly promising to lead Natalee’s family to her body in exchange for money. But his lawyer has now claimed it was Natalee’s mother, Beth (pictured), who approached him to offer cash
Natalee disappeared from the Caribbean island of Aruba in 2005 during a school trip
A grand jury indicted him that year on one count each of wire fraud and racketeering, each of which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
But his lawyer, Maximo Altez, has now made the extraordinary accusation that it was actually Natalee’s mother, Beth, who approached Van der Sloot to offer money if he would take her to her daughter’s body.
“Joran wants to be extradited because he is innocent of the charges,” Altez told DailyMail.com. “He was living his life in Aruba and got a call from Beth Holloway, who cheated on him.
She said, “Joran, tell me where the body is and I’ll give you $250,000.” He never asked for money, she offered it.
“She even gave him advances and he never asked the rest. He only got $25,000.”
Altez explained that his client is a “sick person” and “compulsive gambler” who “needed the money to play at the casino.”
He claimed Mrs Holloway was ‘taking advantage of him’.
Altez outlined a somewhat confusing case for the defense, saying his client admits to fabricating the location of Natalee’s body, adding: “He [van der Sloot] says if he’s guilty of anything, it’s fraud. But in reality he is a sick person.’
But he later clarified that the Dutchman is ‘innocent on the two charges’ [of wire fraud and extortion]’.
Natalee’s body was never found and she was declared legally dead in 2012
Natalee can be seen on casino security footage shortly before her disappearance sitting at a table with van der Sloot
Aruba police arrest suspect Joran van der Sloot in July 2005, before releasing him due to lack of evidence
The lawyer said the killer initially asked him to appeal the extradition, but sent him a letter on Monday saying he wanted to go to the US to clear his name.
Ms. Holloway’s attorney, John Q. Kelly, declined to comment on the allegations.
But they will likely be seen as an insult to a bereaved family already tormented by Van der Sloot’s ever-changing explanation of Natalee’s disappearance.
When questioned, Van der Sloot is said to have first claimed that he dropped Natalee off at a hotel, before later stating that he had left her alone on a beach.
In his 2007 book, The Case of Natalee Holloway: My Own Story about her Disappearance on Aruba, Van der Sloot admitted to lying to the police and apologized to the Holloways.
He wrote, “I understand that my past lies have seriously damaged my credibility.”
He maintained his innocence, explaining that he left an intoxicated Natalee on the beach, where he said she wanted to “look at the stars.”
Prosecutors in the US allege that Van der Sloot contacted Ms Holloway in 2010 asking for $25,000 to disclose the location of her daughter’s body – and then another $225,000 when the remains were discovered.
During a recorded sting operation, Van der Sloot pointed to a house where he said Holloway was buried, but in later emails he admitted lying about the location, an FBI agent said in an affidavit.
Later that year, van der Sloot was arrested in Peru for the murder of 21-year-old Stephany Flores, who was killed five years after Natalee’s disappearance.
Peruvian prosecutors accused van der Sloot of killing Flores, a business student from a prominent family, in order to rob her after learning she had won money at the casino where the two met.
They said he killed her with “cruelty” and “cruelty,” beating and then strangled her in his hotel room. He pleaded guilty in 2012.
van der Sloot dumps his wife, Leidy Figueroa, 33, (pictured left in 2014 shortly after they got married), because he is now dating Eva Pacohuanaco (right), who was accused of smuggling drugs into prison in Peru
It comes after DailyMail.com revealed that van der Sloot is leaving his wife of eight years behind for a “prettier and younger” girlfriend who is accused of smuggling him drugs into prison.
The killer married 33-year-old accountant Leidy Figueroa in a private ceremony at Piedras Gordas Prison in July 2014, when Leidy was seven months pregnant with their daughter Dusha.
But van der Sloot filed for divorce about a year ago after starting a relationship with Eva Pacohuanaco.
The 24-year-old Peruvian was accused of helping him smuggle nearly 300 grams of cocaine and 140 grams of marijuana to another prison in Juliaca, according to reports in Peru.
It gave the Dutchman an extra seven years in his sentence for the murder of Flores.
He must be released in 2038.