1 February 2008

RIJSWIJK – The media in the US has paid considerable attention to Dutch crime report Peter R. de Vries' announcement on Thursday that he has solved the mystery of American teenager Natalee Holloway's disappearance on the island of Aruba in May 2005.

De Vries' claim has prompted justice officials on Aruba to reopen the investigation, the US media reports.

On Monday ABC News will broadcast a 90-minute programme on 18-year-old Natalee's final hours, most likely spent mostly in the company of Dutchman Joran van der Sloot.

Justice authorities in Aruba insist Van der Sloot was the last to see the girl alive.

Various broadcasters and newspapers reported extensively on Van der Sloot's meeting with De Vries during the television programme Pauw & Witteman last month, when Joran threw a glass of wine in the reporter's face after the broadcast.

De Vries issued a press release on Thursday in which he announced that he will reveal his findings on Sunday. Based on new information from De Vries, who used a hidden camera during his investigation, the public prosecution department in Aruba has said that the information "can to a significant degree contribute to solving the mystery surrounding Natalee Holloway's disappearance."

Van der Sloot's lawyer, Joe Tacopina from New York, has said it was irresponsible of the Aruban justice officials to make these kinds of statements without backing them up. He pointed out that Van der Sloot was arrested a second time in November on the basis of "new evidence" which ultimately proved to be groundless.

[Copyright Expatica News + ANP 2008]

Subject: Dutch news