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Natalee Ann Holloway (born October 21, 1986), an American teenager from Mountain Brook, Alabama, disappeared on May 30, 2005 during a post-graduation trip in Aruba. Holloway remains officially missing to this day, although according to Aruban authorities she is unlikely to still be alive. The disappearance caused concern in the United States and Aruba along with a media sensation in both countries, as well as in The Netherlands.

Disappearance

Holloway and 124 fellow graduates of Mountain Brook High School, located in an affluent suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, were visiting Aruba on a five-day unofficial senior class graduation trip. Natalee left Carlos’n Charlie’s, a popular tourist-oriented bar and grill in Oranjestad, at about 1:00 a.m. on Monday, May 30 with Joran van der Sloot (17) and two companions, the brothers Deepak Kalpoe (21) and Satish Kalpoe (18), in Deepak's car.

Natalee did not arrive for her return flight that morning, nor did she appear in any security camera footage of her hotel lobby in the course of the night--although, according to statements made by her mother, Beth Twitty, on April 19, 2006, the security cameras at the Holiday Inn were not working the night Natalee vanished*. Her passport, packed luggage, and mobile phone were found in her hotel room. Searches of the island and surrounding waters began almost immediately, but have to date been fruitless.

Initially, Van der Sloot and the Kalpoes told investigators that they dropped Natalee off at her hotel and drove away as she was approached by two men in black shirts similar to those worn by security guards. Their stories, however, would change under questioning.

In an interview with CBS correspondent Troy Roberts aired on March 25, 2006, Gerold Dompig, deputy chief of police in Aruba (who removed himself from the case shortly afterwards), stated that he now believes Holloway probably died from alcohol and/or drug poisoning and was not murdered, and that someone later hid her body.*

Natalee's behavior

Recent reporting, notably in the feature article in Vanity Fair, has centered on the behavior of the high school group during their vacation in Aruba. According to that article, the 2006 seniors were not welcome at the Holiday Inn due to the behavior of the previous year's graduates.

Natalee's behavior has been closely examined. According to Joran's claims, Natalee lay down on the bar and let him lick a jello shot off her midriff, otherwise known as a 'body shot'. [http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,186581,00.html

Interviews of some of the Mountain Brook High School students who went on the trip to Aruba with Natalee were carried out by the FBI and Aruban authorities in the United States in January 2006. Several had been previously interviewed by the FBI, as evidenced by FBI "302's" (interview reports) submitted as exhibits in the case brought by Natalee's parents against Joran and his father.

Natalee's friends said she had been drinking all day long the day before her disappearance, and Deputy Chief Dompig indicated that the police have evidence which corroborates this, as well as a witness who claimed she possessed drugs. *

Investigation

Leader

Jan van der Straaten was the initial leader of the investigation. After Van der Straaten's retirement, Police Commissioner Gerold Dompig took over as the leader of the investigation. In April 2006 he was replaced by Adolpho (Dolfi) Richardson.

Early investigation

On May 30, immediately following her missed flight, Natalee's stepfather and mother, Jug and Beth Twitty, traveled to Aruba with friends by private jet. Within four hours of landing in Aruba the Twittys and others went to the Aruban police with Van der Sloot's name and address, as the person last known to have been seen with their daughter. Accompanied by two Aruban policemen and other Arubans, they went to the Van der Sloot home looking for Natalee. During this encounter, Joran and Deepak related their first story.

Their initial claims were that they drove Natalee to the "California Lighthouse" area of Arashi Beach because Natalee wanted to see the sharks. According to these initial claims Natalee and Joran "made out" for a short time before they dropped her off at her hotel around 2:00 A.M. They said she fell down as she got out of the car, but she refused Joran's help to get up, and then she was approached by a dark man in a black shirt similar to those worn by security guards, as the young men drove away. On June 5, Aruban Police, led by superintendent Jan van der Straaten, detained Antonius "Mickey" John (30) and Abraham Jones (28), former security guards for the nearby Allegro Hotel, which was closed for renovation.

Natalee's father, Dave Holloway arrived on Aruba two days after her disappearance. He went to the police station and spoke with Dennis Jacobs, the lead detective. According to Holloway, Jacobs' first statement to him was, "Well how much money you got?" Holloway further alleges that Jacobs told Holloway to go to Carlos and Charlie's Bar, and she might turn up there, but to watch his drink as "People put stuff in it." Again according to Holloway, about four months later, Jacobs repeated his request to know how much money he had. Jacobs has made no known statement on Holloway's allegations. by Dave Holloway with R. Stephanie Good and Larry Garrison, pp. 8-10, Nelson Current, 2006

Van der Sloot's arrest

On June 9, Joran and the Kalpoe brothers were arrested as suspects involved in a crime against Natalee. John and Jones were released on June 13.

During interrogation, the remaining suspects' story changed. In a joint police interview between Joran, Deepak, and Satish, Joran said that he was dropped off at his home, and Deepak and Satish drove away with Natalee. Joran then stated to police he left Natalee at the Marriott Hotel beach near the fishermens huts, phoned Deepak, and Deepak returned and gave him a ride home.

On Friday, June 17, a fourth person, later identified as disc jockey Steve Gregory Croes (26) was also arrested. On June 22 Aruban police detained Joran's father, Paulus van der Sloot, for questioning, and arrested him the same day. He was released on June 26 after agreeing to waive his right not to testify against his son. Croes was released on June 27. On Monday, July 4, a Judge Commissioner released Deepak and Satish Kalpoe, but they were re-arrested on August 26 along with another new suspect, Freddy Arambatzis, Joran's friend and neighbour. *

Suspects released

On Saturday, September 3 2005, all four suspects were released by a judge despite the attempts of the prosecution to keep them in custody, on the condition that they remain available to police, however on September 14 all restrictions on the remaining suspects were removed by the Gemeenschappelijk Hof van Justitie van de Nederlandse Antillen en Aruba (the combined appeals court of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba). Though all of those arrested technically remained suspects, they are not in custody and, without additional evidence (and a judge's permission), can only be interrogated voluntarily. Joran now resides in the Netherlands, where he is attending a business college. On November 10, 2005, Paulus won an unjust detention action against the Aruban government and, by virtue of that victory, is no longer legally a suspect. Paulus has also initiated a civil action for monetary damages for himself and his family because of his detention. The final ruling on his civil action is pending--he will be entitled to damages, and a decision on the amount was due May 1, but has been postponed.

Joran, Satish, and Deepak, in interviews after their release, have said that Joran and Natalee were left at a beach near the Marriott Hotel at about 1:40 a.m. Joran initially claimed that he left Natalee and his shoes on the beach and walked almost 2 miles to his home. Joran now says he was picked up by Satish at about 3:00 a.m., left Natalee there - he says she wanted to stay, while he wanted to go home because he had to go to school later that morning. Satish denies picking up Joran.

Physical search

The search for physical evidence has been extensive--and subject to, apparently, false leads. A possible blood sample taken from the car Holloway rode in was tested. The substance was then reported not to be blood. *

A small lake near the Aruba Racquet Club close to the Marriott Hotel beach was partly drained between July 27 and 30 after an individual ("the gardener") claimed to have seen Joran driving, Deepak next to him, and Satish duck downward quickly in Deepak's car that was sitting parked on a dirt road nearby between 2:30 AM and 3:00 AM on the same morning Natalee disappeared. This witness was then declared as not credible when he presented himself in front of a Judge. He was not able to recognize any of the suspects and the lawyers easily destroyed his stories.* Another individual, "Junior," or "the jogger" claimed to have seen Joran, Paulus, Deepak and other persons burying a nude, blonde-haired woman in a landfill during the first week after Natalee disappeared. The police searched the landfill by hand for two hours, finding nothing of interest. Later, when Natalee's father, Dave Holloway, and a volunteer search team learned about the witness, the landfill was extensively searched with heavy garbage-moving/digging equipment. However this witness was not deemed credible since he was a drug addict and had a criminal history. On August 15 it was reported that when the search team members arrived at the landfill, the excavated area had been filled in with new garbage. However, Vanity Fair has reported that the search team searched the landfill until satisfied there was no body present, and searched again in late October. On July 4, the Netherlands deployed three F-16 aircraft equipped with infrared sensors to aid in the search, also without initial result. In March 2006 it was reported that the aircraft photos are being re-examined with additional scrutiny and utilizing new techniques.

On January 17, 2006, Aruban police searched sand dunes on the northwest coast of Aruba for Natalee Holloway. More than 50 Aruba police cadets searched a one-square-mile area around where the young woman was last known to be seen. Additional searches took place in March and April 2006, without result.*

Arrest of new suspects

On April 15, 2006, Geoffrey van Cromvoirt, 19, was arrested by Aruban authorities on suspicion of criminal offenses that, according to the prosecutor, may be related to the disappearance of Holloway and of offenses related to dealing in illegal narcotics At his first court appearance, his detention was extended for eight days. However, Van Cromvoirt was released on April 24, 2006.[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12462771/from/RSS/ In addition, another individual with initials "A.B." was arrested on April 22, 2006, but released the same day.

On May 17, 2006, another suspect, 19-year-old Guido Wever, the son of an former Aruban politician, was detained in The Hague on suspicion of assisting in the abducting, battering, and killing of Holloway. While Aruban authorities requested his transfer to the island, he was instead released on May 23, 2006--according to his lawyers, due to lack of evidence.[http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/05/21/world/main1638431.shtml

All arrestees except Paulus van der Sloot, legally remain suspects. While some have tried to distinguish Joran, Deepak, and Satish as "principal" or "primary" suspects, this is not a distinction recognized by Aruban law.

Reward

The reward for information leading to Natalee's safe return, pledged by her family, ex-con and self-descibed philanthropist Joseph Mammana, private donors, the Aruban government, and Carlos 'n Charlie's Restaurant, is $1,000,000. A $250,000 reward is also offered for information about her whereabouts, alive or dead. *.

Beth Twitty's involvement

Beth Twitty has alleged in televised interviews that Joran, Deepak and Satish Kalpoe know more than they have claimed, and, at least one of them sexually abused and/or raped her daughter. She bases her allegations on parts of an interview with Deepak Kalpoe in which (at least on the version aired on Dr. Phil) he seems to answer "She did" to a suggestion that Natalee had sex with all of them. These clips were first aired on the popular television talk show Dr. Phil. However, in versions of the tapes provided by Aruban authorities, Deepak appears to say "No, she didn't" (the version provided by Dr. Phil has heavy, dramatic music making it harder to discern what Deepak said). According to Satish Kalpoe's attorneys, David Koch and Elgin Zeppenfeldt, the audio has been cut and pasted. The Dutch forensic institute has investigated the credibility of the tapes, and concluded that content of the aired tape did not match the original tape and that he said "No, she didn't".

Twitty claims to have received papers stating that Joran admitted having sex with Natalee at his home and described private details of her, and on the night she vansihed Joran told authorities that Natalee was falling in and out of consciousness. She has not yet provided any copies of such papers, and the evidentiary basis for this is unclear. Vinda de Sousa, former Holloway-Twitty family Aruban attorney, has indicated that no such statement was made. In addition, former deputy chief of police Gerold Dompig has denied that any such statements were made, stating that all three suspects have consistently denied having sexual intercourse with Natalee. *" target="_blank" >(provided by the Aruban police) is available at [http://www.scrux.com Scrux.com.

Twitty has been criticized for what is perceived as excessive focus on Joran, Satish, and Deepak, to the exclusion of any other theory as to what happened to Natalee. She has also been criticized for making what have been deemed to be inconsistant and contradictory statements (for example, as to whether there were operating security cameras at the Holiday Inn). Opinion as to her has polarized on internet discussion boards.

Criticism of the investigation, call for boycott

The Twittys and their supporters have criticized the lack of progress by Aruban police *. Aruban officials and non-US press have attributed their criticism as a lack of understanding of Dutch judicial procedures employed on the island for much of the tension. The Twittys' own actions in Aruba have also been criticized. Some allege that they are actively stifling any evidence that would impugn their daughter's character by asking her fellow students to remain silent about the case and using their access to the media to push their own version of events. The Twittys have denied this publicly.

While initially the Twittys discouraged a boycott, this soon changed and by September 2005, Beth Twitty was encouraging Americans not to travel to Aruba and other Dutch territories. Governor Riley, joined by the Twittys, renewed his call for an unofficial boycott on November 8, 2005 in a news conference He also wrote to other United States governors seeking their support--the governors of Georgia and Arkansas eventually joined in the call for boycott. The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, city council voted to ask the governor of Pennsylvania to call for a boycott. [http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20051110T190000-0500_92210_OBS_ARUBA_BOYCOTT_OVER_MISSING_TEEN_CASE_MAY_SPREAD_TO_PHILADELPHIA.asp. He did not do so. The call for boycott has received no Federal support. * It appears difficult or impossible to say if the calls for boycott have had any measurable effect on Aruba's economy.

Members of the Aruba Hotel and Tourism Association, the Aruba Tourism Authority, the Aruba Hospitality & Security Foundation, the Aruban Chamber of Commerce and government figures, including Public Relations Representative Ruben Trappenberg, formed a "Strategic Communications Task Force" to respond collectively to unfounded portrayals of the island. The group issues press releases and sends representatives to appear in news media. They have joined the Aruban government in opposing the calls for a boycott of the island.

Media coverage

U.S. television networks have devoted much air time to the search for Natalee, the investigation of her disappearance, and rumors surrounding the case; Greta Van Susteren, host of On The Record on Fox News, perhaps most prominently, alongside Nancy Grace on Headline News, whose show began airing at the exact apex of the coverage. Van Susteren's almost continuous coverage of the story caused On The Record to get its best ratings to date while Grace's show has become the cornerstone of the new "Headline Prime" block on HLN, which has run two episodes (a live show and a repeat) every night during prime-time. As the case has worn on, much of the attention has been given to Beth Twitty and her statements [http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9065827/.

Criticism of media coverage

The saturation of coverage triggered a backlash among some critics who allude to the media's supposed "missing white woman syndrome". CNN ran a segment criticizing the amount of coverage their competitors have been giving to the story Locally, the Aruban Press has published extensive news on the story both in Dutch Papiamento language [http://www.diarioaruba.com/" target="_blank" >*. The story generated only mild interest in the Netherlands.

The saturation coverage of Natalee's disappearance by the American media was largely eclipsed in late August 2005 by Hurricane Katrina. Beth Twitty has alleged that Aruba took advantage of the media lull to release the suspects and discourage continued U.S. media presence on the island. *. However, the deadline for judicial review of the suspects' detention was set long before the hurricane.

Police procedurals on American television have aired episodes based to some extent on the Natalee Holloway case:

See also

References

External links

1986 births | Possibly living people | Disappeared people | People from Birmingham, Alabama | Aruba

Natalee Holloway

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Natalee Holloway".

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