Holloway mystery finally solved?

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Bringing new life to the case
Faced with this new “evidence,” the Aruban prosecutor, someone who just one month ago stated he was dropping his investigation concerning the three suspects as he had no further evidence with which to charge them, now has reopened the investigation, although a local judge indicated Van der Sloot’s recorded statements concerning his involvement in Holloway’s disappearance was “too feeble to merit the rearrest and pretrial detention of Van der Sloot.”

This investigation has been a constant rollercoaster with Van der Sloot, the two Kalpoes and a number of others arrested and released a number of times, usually accompanied by the promise of important investigative breakthroughs, only to be followed by yet one more letdown for the family and friends of Holloway. Holloway’s mother, Beth Holloway Twitty, who has been a tirelessly campaigner for justice for her missing daughter, believes Van der Sloot’s recorded statement, and has finally given up any hope she may have had concerning the ever-so-remote possibility that her daughter might still somehow be alive.

When I spoke with Depak Kalpoe shortly after Holloway's disappearance, he professed his innocence while indicating his belief that the case would never go away due to Beth Holloway Twitty’s tenacity. It would appear that should deVries finally have “the goods” on Van der Sloot or someone else, arrests may eventually follow.

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Secret tapes of a suspect’s confession are a good starting place for an investigation, but proof beyond a reasonable doubt remains the standard. What the police in Aruba now need to determine is the identity of the person Van der Sloot says he called to help him dispose of the victim’s body and try somehow to take Van der Sloot’s statements into a courtroom where truth will finally trump lie, and guilt can be ascribed to those really responsible for Holloway’s death and/or the criminal disposal of her body.

Van der Sloot, for his part, joked on the secret videotape about the ineptness of the Aruban police, calling the police idiots and further stating it was now time for him to cash in on this case, i.e. he wants to make money concerning Holloway’s disappearance and now believed death.

No matter the final outcome, candid camera, apparently, has reached a new level, but can this tape in and of itself convict Van der Sloot of murder? Most legal experts believe not. We’ll now see if the Aruban police, given one more chance, can finally solve this case that has haunted Aruba for almost three years.

Clint Van Zandt is a former FBI agent, behavioral profiler and hostage negotiator as well as an MSNBC analyst. His Web site, www.LiveSecure.org, provides readers with security-related information.