Joran Andreas Petrus van der Sloot (; born 6 August 1987 in Arnhem) is a Dutch murderer, extortionist, con man, and drug trafficker who was convicted in the 2010 killing of Stephany Flores Ramírez in Lima, Peru. He first came to public attention as the prime suspect in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway in 2005.
After Flores' murder on 30 May 2010, five years to the day after Holloway's disappearance, Van der Sloot fled to Chile, where he was arrested and extradited to Peru for questioning regarding the murder.
On 7 June 2010, Van der Sloot confessed to bludgeoning Flores. He later tried to formally retract his confession, claiming that he had been intimidated by the Peruvian Police and framed by the FBI. A Peruvian judge ruled on 25 June 2010 that the confession was valid, and on 13 January 2012, Van der Sloot was sentenced to 28 years' imprisonment for Flores's murder. In January 2023, an additional 18 years were added to his sentence for trafficking cocaine while in prison.
On 8 June 2023, Van der Sloot was extradited to the United States to face trial for extortion and wire fraud, with both charges being linked to Holloway's disappearance. On 18 October 2023, he admitted to killing Holloway in a proffer letter, which was released after he pleaded guilty to other associated charges in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.
The Holloway and Flores cases both attracted widespread media attention; Time magazine declared Van der Sloot's arrest the top crime story of 2010. He was the subject of international news coverage from prison, leading to controversies that resulted in the investigation and suspension of several Peruvian officials.
Background
Joran Andreas Petrus van der Sloot was born on 6 August 1987 in the Dutch city of Arnhem, one of three sons to Paulus van der Sloot (1952–2010), a lawyer, and Anita van der Sloot-Hugen, an art teacher. In 1990, his family moved from Arnhem to Aruba, where he was an honor student at the International School of Aruba.
Van der Sloot was a football (soccer) and tennis athlete at the school, competed in doubles tennis with his father at the Moët & Chandon Anniversary Cup in 2005 and hoped to play for Saint Leo University. Van der Sloot's mother said he was a habitual liar and had a tendency to sneak out of the house at night to go to casinos.
Disappearance of Natalee Holloway
On 29 May 2005, Van der Sloot met Natalee Holloway at Carlos'n Charlie's bar in downtown Oranjestad, Aruba. Holloway was an 18-year-old American, vacationing in Aruba to celebrate her graduation from high school. Holloway and Van der Sloot drank and danced together at the bar. When the bar closed at 1:00 a.m., Holloway was last seen leaving in a car with Van der Sloot and two brothers, 21-year-old Deepak and 18-year-old Satish Kalpoe.
On 9 June 2005, Van der Sloot and both Kalpoe brothers were arrested in regards to the disappearance of Holloway. The Kalpoe brothers were released from custody on 4 July, while Van der Sloot remained in custody. The brothers were re-arrested on 26 August on suspicion of rape and murder. All three suspects were released on 3 September due to lack of evidence.
After his release, Van der Sloot was required to stay within Dutch territory pending the results of the investigation. On 5 September 2005, he returned to the Netherlands to study international business management at the HAN University of Applied Sciences. On 14 September, a higher court removed the travel restrictions. Gerold G. Dompig, former deputy commissioner of the Aruba Police Force, stated that the initial arrests were made prematurely under pressure from Holloway's family. Dompig charged that the family sidetracked the investigation by making it difficult for the police to collect evidence to solve the case.
Media coverage On 26 September 2005, Van der Sloot told the American television show A Current Affair that neither he nor the Kalpoe brothers had sex with Holloway, but he admitted that they initially agreed to lie to the authorities. He said that they first told police that Holloway was dropped off alone at her hotel, while he later said that he was dropped off with her at the beach. Van der Sloot stated that he left Holloway alone at the beach at her request and that he regretted it.
On 6 February 2006, on ABC's Good Morning America, Van der Sloot's parents stated that their son was unfairly singled out and that the investigation left them devastated. Later that month, while Van der Sloot and his father were in New York City for an interview with ABC's Primetime, they were served with a lawsuit filed by Natalee's parents, Beth and Dave Holloway, alleging personal injury; the case was dismissed on jurisdictional grounds that August.
In April 2007 Van der Sloot and a reporter published a book describing the case. Van der Sloot began writing the book while attending business classes in Arnhem. He stated in the introduction, "I see this book as my opportunity to be open and honest about everything that happened, for anyone who wants to read it."
2007 search and arrest On 27 April 2007, a new search involving some 20 investigators was launched at Van der Sloot's parents' home in Aruba. Dutch authorities searched the yard and surrounding area, using shovels and thin metal rods to probe the ground. A spokesman for the prosecutor's office, Vivian van der Biezen, stated: "The investigation has never stopped and the Dutch authorities are completely reviewing the case for new indications." A statement released directly from the prosecutor's office stated: "The team has indications that justify a more thorough search." Investigators did not comment on what prompted the new search, except that it was not related to Van der Sloot's book.
On 21 November 2007, Van der Sloot and the Kalpoe brothers were re-arrested in Arnhem and Aruba, respectively, for "suspicion of involvement in voluntary manslaughter and causing serious bodily harm that resulted in the death of Natalee Holloway" because of what the Aruba prosecutor's office stated was "new incriminating evidence" related to Holloway's disappearance. Van der Sloot returned to Aruba on 23 November, and a court hearing on 26 November ruled to continue his detention for eight days. The Kalpoe brothers were released on 1 December. Van der Sloot was ordered released on 7 December; he was released without charge the same day.
2008 Dutch television sting operations
On 11 January 2008, after being challenged on the Dutch late-night talk show Pauw & Witteman by crime reporter Peter de Vries, Van der Sloot threw a glass of red wine in De Vries's face. On 3 February, an undercover video made by De Vries aired on Dutch television, purporting to show Van der Sloot smoking marijuana and admitting to being present during Holloway's death. The show was watched by 7 million viewers in the Netherlands and was the most popular non-sports program in Dutch television history.
Patrick van der Eem, working undercover for De Vries, had befriended Van der Sloot, who was unaware that he was being taped when he said that Holloway had suffered some kind of seizure while having sex with him on the beach. After failing to revive her, Van der Sloot said that he summoned a friend named "Daury". The two men neither phoned for medical help nor checked Holloway to determine if she might still be alive. "Daury", according to Van der Sloot, volunteered to load her onto a boat; he then dumped Holloway's body into the sea. The prosecutor in Aruba determined the video was admissible, but the evidence was deemed "insufficient" to warrant any arrests. Although the taped confession appeared damning, Van der Sloot maintained that he had been lying to Van der Eem in order to impress him, believing his new acquaintance to be a drug dealer.
On 22 September 2008, in New York City, De Vries, accompanied by Beth Holloway, accepted an International Emmy Award in Current Affairs for his coverage of Natalee Holloway's disappearance. Under pressure generated by the Pauw & Witteman program, Van der Sloot voluntarily checked into a psychiatric clinic, before departing the Netherlands for Thailand. He moved to Muang Ake, a suburb of Bangkok, intending to study business at Rangsit University, but dropped out and bought Sawadee Cup, a restaurant next to the campus that served sandwiches and pizza.
In November 2008, De Vries aired undercover footage of Van der Sloot making preparations for the apparent sex trafficking of Thai women in Bangkok into Europe. De Vries claimed that Van der Sloot was making $13,000 for every woman sold into prostitution in the Netherlands. Van der Sloot had been using the alias "Murphy Jenkins" in order to avoid Thai authorities. Peruvian Minister of Justice Aurelio Pastor later was to state that Thailand was pursuing criminal charges against Van der Sloot. According to National Enquirer, he was being investigated by Thai authorities for his involvement in the disappearance of young women he may have recruited for a Thai sex slave gang while posing as a production consultant for a modeling agency that, ostensibly, would send them to Europe to work as models.
Van der Sloot was portrayed by actor Jacques Strydom in the Lifetime television film Natalee Holloway (2009), based on Beth Holloway's book about her daughter's disappearance. The film brought in the highest television ratings in Lifetime's then-eleven-year history. Van der Sloot himself watched the film one evening in 2010, according to his friend, John Ludwick, and said that some parts were true while others were not. The film was followed by a sequel, Justice for Natalee Holloway (2011), in which Van der Sloot was played by actor Stephen Amell.
In August 2009, Van der Sloot was spotted in Macau at the Asia Pacific Poker Tour. He won over $12,000 that year in an online poker tournament. Van der Sloot described himself on his YouTube page as "a professional poker player" and cited Barry Greenstein's 2005 poker strategy guide as his favorite book.
In early 2010, following the death of his father, Paulus, he sold his Bangkok restaurant business and returned to Aruba.
Father's involvement in the case Paulus van der Sloot was arrested on 22 June 2005, for questioning in Holloway's disappearance. He was ordered released on 26 June after three days of questioning. According to Aruba's chief prosecutor, one of the Kalpoe brothers told investigators that Paulus, who at the time was training to be a judge, advised his son that, without a body, the police would have no case. Beth Holloway pursued Van der Sloot's parents in the media circus on Aruba which ensued after Natalee's disappearance. She stated that Paulus acknowledged that they could not control their son and had sent him to a psychiatrist.
On 10 November 2005, Paulus won an unjust detention action against the Aruban government, clearing him as a suspect and allowing him to retain his government contract. Paulus van der Sloot then brought a second action, seeking monetary damages for himself and his family because of his false arrest. The action was initially successful, but the award of 40,000 Aruban florins (US$22,300) was reversed on appeal. The family's finances had become depleted by their legal expenses. In January 2007, Paulus found work as a managing partner at the law firm that had represented him.