Dutchman Joran van der Sloot, a suspect in the 2005 disappearance of an American teenager, will be extradited from Peru to face criminal charges in the US, according to media reports.
He is currently in Peru serving 28 years in prison for killing a 21-year-old Peruvian woman named Stephany Flores.
American Natalee Holloway, 18, went missing during a school trip in Aruba.
Van der Sloot faces federal wire fraud and extortion charges in the US.
In a statement reported in US media, Holloway’s family said Peru has agreed to temporarily extradite Van der Sloot do he can “answer for his crimes”.
In the US, Van der Sloot is accused of taking $25,000 from Beth Holloway, Natalee’s mother, in exchange for information regarding the whereabouts of the 18-year-old’s body.
Prosecutors say the money was paid but no information was revealed.
Natalee Holloway’s body was never found. She was officially declared dead in 2012 by an Alabama judge.
She was in Aruba on a high school graduation trip in May 2005 when she vanished. She was last seen leaving a bar with Van der Sloot.
Van der Sloot was arrested but never charged in connection with Holloway’s disappearance.
“It has been a very long and painful journey, but the persistence of many is going to pay off. Together, we are finally getting justice for Natalee,” Beth Holloway said in a statement on Wednesday.
She also expressed thanks to officials in US and Peru.
Gustavo Meza-Cuadra, Peru’s ambassador to the US, said in a statement that “we hope that this action will enable a process that will help to bring peace to Mrs Holloway and to her family, who are grieving in the same way that the Flores family in Peru”.
Peruvian officials said that Van der Sloot will be temporarily handed over to the US for prosecution and will return to Peru following the proceedings, according to CBS News, the BBC’s US partner.
A 2001 treaty between Peru and the US allows a suspect to be extradited for a trial but requires the prisoner be returned once judicial proceedings have concluded.
Source – BBC News
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