LIMA, Peru (CBS) ― The man considered the prime suspect in the disappearance of American teenager Natalee Holloway is wanted in Peru for the suspicion of murder, according to police officials.
Peruvian police say a young Dutchman twice arrested in the 2005 disappearance of Alabama teen Natalee Holloway is now a suspect in the slaying of a Peruvian woman.
Chief of detectives Col. Miguel Canlla says police are seeking Joran van der Sloot in the Sunday killing of 21-year-old Stephany Flores Ramirez in a Lima hotel.
The girl’s father, Ricardo Flores, says van der Sloot appears with her in video taken at a Lima casino early Sunday. Ricardo Flores is a race car driver and well-known businessman, CBS News reports.
Police say they are seeking to confirm van der Sloot’s identity with the Dutch Embassy. It refused to comment to The CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM.
Peruvian immigration officials say van der Sloot departed Peru on Monday. Canlla says Peru is asking Chilean authorities for help in the case.
CBS News’ Crimesider has been told that an Aruban prosecutor described van der Sloot as being on the run, but that information has not been independently confirmed.
Early Wednesday morning, Ramirez was found dead in a hotel room located on the avenue Miraflores district of Lima, Peruvian newspaper El Comercio reports. According to police reports, the girl was brutally stabbed and was found wrapped in a blanket in a pool of blood.
According to Peruvian police, she was last seen with van der Sloot.
According to the Peruvian newspaper, the hotel room where Ramirez’s body was found was registered under van der Sloot’s name. Hotel employees also told police that they saw him with the girl over the weekend.
Five years ago, in May 2005, Alabama high school student Natalee Holloway disappeared during a senior class trip to Aruba. She was 18 when she was last seen leaving a bar with Joran van der Sloot, who was 17 at the time. He was detained in the case several times but Aruban authorities have said they don’t have enough evidence to charge him.
Crimesider blogger Edecio Martinez contributed to this story.
Read the original article from WBBM News Radio.