Renewed Interest Sparked By “The Natalee Holloway Story” Movie
A new made for television movie about the disappearance of Natalie Holloway was broadcast on Sunday night. The result — a “perfect storm” on the Internet as renewed interest in the case immediately catapulted the term “Natalie Holloway” to the top of the search engine charts. Our two stories about the case received thousands of hits overnight and the visits will no doubt continue to increase as the day progresses.
As a result of this new interest we’ve learned something ourselves: the suspect in Natalie’s disappearance was recently filmed again with a hidden video camera — this time involved in human trafficking of Thai prostitutes to work in Europe. Joran Van der Sloot was caught out in Bangkok Thailand last November, 2008 by undercover reporters posing as Dutch sex industry bosses. Van der Sloot was videotaped accepting cash to arrange immigration and travel documents for the girls — who believed they were being hired as dancers in the Netherlands at $400 per month.
What a nasty piece of work this Joran Van der Sloot is. As related in our February 4, 2008 story (link below), Van der Sloot was befriended by an undercover reporter and confessed on hidden video that he had disposed of Natalie’s body possibly while she was still alive.
The name Natalie Holloway will be synonymous with the word “Aruba” for the foreseeable future — perhaps even decades into the future if her disappearance remains unsolved.
As a side note, we at Barbados Free Press are reminded every once in a while of the power of the Internet to give worthy stories “legs” — staying power in the public consciousness. Although public interest in a story might fade in the news cycle, when something makes the story current, all the background is instantly available to ordinary people on the Internet. As we have seen ourselves on numerous occasions, these legacy stories can result in tens of thousands of new visitors over a day or two.
In Barbados, the political and media elites still think they can effectively control information and the public consciousness. How quickly Prime Minister David Thompson and his DLP party have forgotten the lessons of the 2007 campaign — when a handful of blogs run by ordinary citizens were probably the tipping point in the fall of the Owen Arthur government and the election of the DLP.
Further Reading
Barbados Free Press: Joran van der Sloot Says Natalee Holloway Was Dumped Into The Sea – Possibly While Still Alive
Barbados Free Press: Say “Aruba” – Think “Natalee Holloway”
ABC News: Suspect in Holloway Case Allegedly Caught Arranging for Sex Workers
Daily Newscaster: Joran van der Sloot flees Thailand and possible human trafficking charges – Updated
Fox News Report: Natalee Holloway Suspect Involved in Thai Sex Trafficking
21 Comments
April 20, 2009 at 1:31 pm
I saw the movie.What I do not understand is with all this evidence ,how come he has not been charged with her murder?????
April 20, 2009 at 2:27 pm
Beacuse it seems that Aruba’s police and legal system are even more corrupt than Barbados. Van der Sloot’s father is a Judge, the two Indian boys that helped him, their father is one of the richest men on the island. Instant formulae for subverting the course of justice.
April 20, 2009 at 6:31 pm
Meanwhile in Barbados, no inquest for the Codringtons.
The value of and respect for human life in Barbados approaches the attitude of Joran Van der Sloot.
April 20, 2009 at 7:44 pm
Where do you people get this information. Joran’s father is not a judge but a lawyer wanna be at that time and the kalpoes have no money at all. I think they dont even know where their father is and they are from Suriname. And the police here is not filled with corruption cheezzzzzzzz
April 20, 2009 at 8:47 pm
I got my information from media reports so if they are incorrect take it up with the media. I don’t live in Aruba so where else would I get my info from?
April 20, 2009 at 9:29 pm
“Prior to the disappearance of Natalee Holloway it is well known that Paulus van der Sloot had been a Dutch judge in training. Did his connections to the judiciary in Aruba and nearby Curacao have any influence on these rulings by Judge Bob Wit? Judge Bob Wit’s early decisions in the Natalee Holloway case would start a chain reaction of pro-Dutch, anti-victim rulings that would eventually free the van der Sloots from facing criminal charges.”
http://nataleesfreebirds.blogspot.com/2007/12/rick-smid-arubas-dirtiest-judge.html
April 20, 2009 at 9:50 pm
Thank You, reality check! Rojaky, wheel and come again!
April 21, 2009 at 4:29 pm
I wonder if a black girl or a non American was involved, if there would be such a fracas.
If this Dutch lad is as stupid as the “evidence” seems to imply, it is unlikely that he will not be caught out eventually.
April 21, 2009 at 7:39 pm
Please check above link in my name for letter I wrote in 2005 on Holloway’s death?
An Alabama radio station made a ploy to ban the WHOLE region for the Aruba incident, and it got me enraged…
“Dear Mr. Fine
As a journalist, I learned thru Caribbean Net News of your so-called intelligent tactic of calling for a ban of the entire Caribbean.”
That is not only ridiculous, but out of order!”
I am telling you now as resident of this part of the world, it is as if after 9/11 disaster that the entire Caribbean decided not to let in any resident from Canada nor the US as you all had the potential to bring unwanted elements of society into our domain; it is as stupid if after the disease known as SARS that we let in no one from all of Asia along with Canada and the US.”
No one told the girl to break away from her group and go with strangers! Common sense dictates when anyone is in a strange environment be it near or far that safety lies in numbers of one’s own milieu!”
Aruba is as close to Barbados or Grenada or St. Lucia as Mobile is as close to either Houston, TX or Buffalo, NY and calling for a ban on the entire region is therefore out of place.”
Should the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association and its counterparts along with the Caribbean Tourism Organisation and the Caribbean Hotel Association run a class action suit and press charges against you and your yellow tabloidisms to gain ratings at the expense of a people?”
You are attempting a form of genocide, and it shows ingratitude to the Caribbean who as a people have contributed to the USA and the world – former US Secretary of State Colin Powell is the son of Jamaican parents; Canadian Senator Anne Cools is from Barbados; Sir Vidiadhar Naipaul, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature was born in Trinidad and Sir Derek Walcott who won the same prize in the 90’s was born in St. Lucia – who are you to create a false hue and cry for one person in another part of a WIDE archipelago?”
“Many Americans are notoriously known for their inaccurate knowledge of an atlas far less a map of the USA, when is the last time you looked at a map of the Caribbean – you make Bob Dornan, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity look like intellectuals! Please find enclosed a map of the Caribbean for your education.”
April 22, 2009 at 12:03 am
Ian
I think you were quite nice in your letter. Though I dont condone murder, this girl’s behavior was ridiculously stupid, to remove herself from the group of her peers with whom she visited Aruba, and her drunkeness on a strange beach is in my view inexcusable.
You are quite correct about Americans and thier poor knowledge of world Geography. But most of them dont know US Geography either.Many of them rarely leave thier towns, cities or state!
April 22, 2009 at 5:38 pm
Watch on YOUTUBE bigjuicykungfu Natalee Holloway Aruba 1- 8
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: A member of the Dutch parliament slams officials on the island of Aruba, allegations of a cover-up and corruption related to the disappearance of Natalee Holloway.
Look at Fox News
April 22, 2009 at 9:51 pm
Thompson and his DLP party have forgotten the lessons of the 2007 campaign — when a handful of blogs run by ordinary citizens were probably the tipping point in the fall of the Owen Arthur government and the election of the DLP.
————————————————–
indeed NOT
THE DLP SPENT A LOT OF MONEY
BLOGS HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH NUTTIN
DONT FOOL YUHSELF
April 23, 2009 at 12:57 am
Where did you hear or read that his father was a judge?
April 23, 2009 at 1:22 am
Joran’s father was a judge in training at the time of Natalee’s dissapearance. Follow the link: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/usa/news/article_1376511.php/Joran_van_der_Sloot_in_Aruba_Holloway_case_continues
April 24, 2009 at 4:47 pm
The DLP spent a lot of money – donated by their supporters. There was also a calculated campaign by parts of the media and certain talk show moderators to sensationalise and promote anti-BLP information while supporting DLP chatter about what the new Gov would do for the people.
It is all fair in love and war and politics. A few blogs did not change the Gov.
April 24, 2009 at 5:19 pm
@ anonymous – the skin colour of the victim has little to do with the matter so why introduce that? Why does that issue have to be raised in order to make a point?
The fact that Holloway is American does make a difference. They protect their own and particularly when one of their own appears to be in danger in a foreign land.
I think it is inevitable that Joran van der Sloot will eventually fall foul of the law . OJ finally did and is now serving time, he should have been there over a decade ago but the judge & his lawyer apparently wanted to make him a martyr.
His father, a judge in training, evidently was able to use his influence to get his son out of trouble and he evidently was able to help him hide whatever had happened to Holloway. It is disgraceful what happened but they must live with their consciences and their time will come.
July 12, 2009 at 6:20 am
dear hollway’s family i’m so sorry for ur lost of ur daugther natalie hollway i would know how that is cause one of my best friends got into a car and did not no the guy that was giving her a ride home raped her and killed her and he never told the family the truth at all and got a away with my best friends death
Love, heather
July 12, 2009 at 6:22 am
i hope natalie hollway’s family can make it trough what ever comes their way
July 13, 2009 at 11:33 pm
In Barbados we have five bodies that were autopsied. We have educated and knowledgeable people saying that the Codrington family died because of the actions of other people.
No inquest will be held because some of the people responsible for the five deaths are big shots.
July 16, 2009 at 1:20 am
I watched the movie twice, and d id not pick up on this until the second time I watched it. But I wonder did they ever look into any of the chaperones. I think these boys the vanderslopps may have d one something but, there is no explanation good enough that nobody seemed to miss her. how could that be? Also go back and watch the scene at the airport when the male chaperone interacts with the students and says he will give the back pack to Natalie, sorry but something creeped me out. what if they did drop her off at the hotel but it was someone involved from the school. it is jsut to odd for my taste that not one person on this trip realized she was missing until they were on the way to the flight, very odd. to tell you the truth they might want to look into some of the chaperones, just watch that scene
October 7, 2009 at 11:30 pm
i just finished watcing the movie and i cried!! i won’t lie, i honestly did. if i were her friends i could not live with myself for what happened to her, true it was not entirley their fault, but they could of tried hardder to stop her from getting into a complete strangers car alone and drunk.
I wish her family the best and i hope Natalee will come back home alive and welll!!!!!!!!