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 By Patrick Hurley May 29, 2006 One year ago tonight several teenagers from Mountain Brook, Alabama, were dancing and drinking at Carlos and Charlie's in Aruba. One of them was Natalee Holloway. They were soon to be joined by a 17 year-old Dutch national. His name was Joran Van der Sloot. Since that night, one year ago today, Natalee is missing and presumed dead and Joran is studying at the university in Holland. Most of the people who loved Natalee believed Joran had something to do with her death. Most of those who support Joran believe his version of events once these two individuals left together. So, where is the truth in this mystery. Just as importantly, what are the falsehoods? Well, let's refresh, shall we? Natalee was sober at Carlos and Charlie's and was probably slipped a date rape drug by one of the bartenders to entice her to get into the car. FALSE. Natalee was drinking that night and appeared to her friends to get into the car voluntarily and on her own accord. Joran could not have killed Natalee because she was seen on the Holiday Inn video at 3:15 a.m. after he dropped her off. FALSE. This has been a myth perpetuated by the supporters of Joran. The investigators do not have any such video. In fact, no one does. If they did, they would produce it for the world to see. Natalee rode around with Joran, Deepak Kalpoe and Satish Kalpoe for awhile until the brothers dropped Joran and Natalee off at a beach. UNCONFIRMED. This is Joran's story. The problem with it is two-fold; he has changed the ending to it twice. First, he said that Deepak came back and picked him up after he was done with Natalee and then he admitted it was Satish who picked him up. To further complicate this version, Deepak was very anxious to make up a story detailing that the boys dropped off Natalee at the Holiday Inn and contradicting this account. If the story Joran tells is true, then WHY would Deepak and Joran spend days concocting the other one that was false? Joran and Deepak told a lie not because they were murderers but because they were scared. TRUE AND FALSE. It would be natural for young men to panic and create a false story if they saw a girl accidentally die on a beach in the early morning hours. But, unless that overdose can be pinned on them giving her the drugs, they have nothing to hide unless...they were the CAUSE of her death in some way. Then, they would have a motive to lie and get rid of her body. Natalee was probably buried first and then moved out to the ocean or incinerated the next day. TRUE. There were plenty of places to hide a body on Aruba for 24 hours, but after Natalee's mom and her stepfather showed up, there was reason to go further in disposing of the body. Ocean or cremation? The boys had contacts in both possibilities. Steve Croes the disc jockey, was innocently trying to help three strangers when he lied for them. FALSE. People who have observed him since Natalee's disappearance have found him to be elusive and acting defensively concerning any questions about that night. Innocent people do not act that way, nor do they voluntarily insert themself into a missing person investigation for kicks. Paulus Van der Sloot said to the boys, "No body, no case." UNCONFIRMED. He may have said it, but it cannot be verified. There may have been several other young people who were involved in Natalee's disappearance. TRUE. Joran continues to be the lead suspect, but he had a grapevine of friends that have not surfaced in the investigation. If he did kill her or try to get rid of her body, he had help beyond his father and the Kalpoe brothers. A body does not disappear that easily and effortlessly. Beth Twitty is raking in thousands of dollars from the donations sent to her corporation because of Natalee's disappearance. FALSE. Beth has received donations, as has Dave Holloway; but if any of that money goes to her personally or any of her family or friends, she is legally liable for fraud. In addition, contrary to internet urban myths, she did not purchase a vehicle for her son with those funds. The financial records clearly show that it was the boy's grandmother who bought it for him. Natalee was seen at parties involving alcohol before she went to Aruba. TRUE. This makes her a typical American teenager, not a decadent individual who got what she deserved in Aruba. There is no evidence proving that Joran Van der Sloot killed Natalee. TRUE. By the time the Aruban investigators focused on the three boys, specifically Joran, any physical evidence to incriminate them and him was gone. In fact, the Kalpoe brothers were seen washing their car the day after Natalee was reported missing. One of Joran's shoes is missing, which means he left Natalee on the beach and ran to a car (according to his version) with one shoe. Permission for a detailed search of the Van der Sloot home has not been granted by the family. No credible witnesses have been found who saw anything suspicious between any of the boys and Natalee. We are left with Joran's version of events and a missing girl which is similar to Scott Peterson and his wife, Laci. It was not until Laci's body had been found floating in the same Bay where Scott said he was fishing the day she disappeared that the prosecution was able to proceed with their case. That is not likely here since Joran said he left her on a beach and went home. Natalee committed suicide. FALSE. Natalee was a fragile soul but she would never commit suicide nor did she have a death wish. She was looking forward to being with her friends at the University of Alabama. This case was popular only because the media kept promoting it. FALSE. The media did not keep the case alive, the viewers did that. The news outlets only focus on events that the public wants to see or their revenue would suffer. As long as the public demanded an answer to this seductive mystery, the media was agreeable to pound it. Once the American people got bored of it, the media went to other stories. This mystery had all the components of a must read novel, good-looking people, an island paradise, sex, youth, a questionable alliance between the accused family and the investigative team, botched police work, false arrests, a grieving family who would not give up and a vanishing that could not be logically explained. That drove viewers crazy and they wanted more. The media obliged. This case will never be solved. UNDETERMINED. Someday, someone may surface and tell us what happened that night. But, one thing is more certain, even if that happens, this case will never be proven. Unless Natalee ran away or was sold into a sex slave ring. Both possibilities are long shots, but seriously taken by individuals who want her to still be alive. The parents of Natalee Holloway went too far in their quest to find her. FALSE. A parent who loves their child would never give up until there is some kind of final resolution. Even then, they never stop loving in their heart. Meri Ulrich and I are the same person. FALSE. I don't even know Meri. We have never met. She lives in a different state than I do and although I admire her writing and her greatly, we are not a team in any way, shape or form. We are united in spirit because we deeply respect Beth Twitty and Dave Holloway and their love for their daughter. One year ago today Natalee Holloway walked into Carlos and Charlie's. One year ago tomorrow she walked out and for a reason unknown to anyone but her, she got into a car with a boy she hardly knew and vanished forever. That is not a falsehood. That is the truth. ------------ About the author: Pat Hurley has won three Emmy awards for writing, hosting and producing television shows. He resides in Southern California. Email: coolhumor@sbcglobal.net Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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