Return to Transcripts main page

Nancy Grace

New Suspect in Natalee Holloway Case in Custody in the Netherlands

Aired May 22, 2006 - 20:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, GUEST HOST: Tonight, breaking developments in the Natalee Holloway case. A new suspect is in custody in the Netherlands. It`s been almost one year since the Alabama teen went missing in Aruba. Is this arrest finally the big break authorities have been waiting for?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BETH HOLLOWAY TWITTY, NATALEE HOLLOWAY`S MOTHER: They have really had just such a botched investigation from the beginning, and whether that was due to incompetence or corruption or cover-up, I mean, we don`t know.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Good evening, everybody. I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, sitting in for Nancy Grace. We want to thank you for being with us. And get ready to ask some questions because we will be taking your calls on this big development.

A casino worker already questioned last year in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway is now considered a suspect. The 19-year-old was arrested on suspicion of murder and manslaughter. His attorney says he is innocent. This makes the tenth arrest in the case. Again tonight, we are taking your calls.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My client, you know, is indicted for murder and manslaughter. He was a witness in June last year after Natalee disappeared. He is now a suspect. And the prosecution in Aruba is wanting him very quickly. He never met her. He claimed that he never seen her, and he claims he`s completely innocent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, another suspect under arrest in the Natalee Holloway case. Let`s send it straight to investigative reporter Leslie Snadowsky to bring us up to date on this bombshell development -- Leslie.

LESLIE SNADOWSKY, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: Jane, you`re right. It`s the tenth arrest that`s been made. Nineteen-year-old Guido Wever has been indicted on charges of murder and manslaughter and is in custody in the Netherlands. Basically, he`s under suspicion of participating in the kidnapping and battery leading to the probable murder of Natalee Holloway

VELEZ-MITCHELL: We are very, very delighted to have with us tonight Natalee`s mom, Beth Twitty. Beth, you have been waiting so long. This has been such a roller-coaster ride for you. Do you think this is the significant development you have been praying for?

TWITTY: Well, Jane, what I`m getting from John, the family`s attorney, is, you know, just to remain guarded and don`t get too caught up in this. And you know, we just don`t know. We`ve been down this road before, Jane, so it`s just -- but I`ll be honest, it is hard not to get caught up in it.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So you do get excited, and your adrenaline starts pumping.

TWITTY: Well, of course, I mean, we do. We find -- especially within the first few days, it`s really hard to keep your feet on the ground. But you know, he keeps reminding me just, you know, Beth, just -- just hang on. We just don`t know, you know, what will result of this.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now, when did you hear about this? Do you get the tips on these a little bit earlier than the media?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Sometimes I do and sometimes I don`t. In this case, I think it was just coming about so quickly from both sources, from the media and from John, that it was hard to tell. It was -- it just happened so quickly.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: We have a comment now from the attorney of the suspect. The attorney`s name is Gerold Spong. The suspect`s name is Guido Wever. He proclaims the teen`s innocence. Let`s listen in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEROLD SPONG, SUSPECT`S ATTORNEY: My client, Guido, is indicted of murder and manslaughter. And it is a serious indictment, of course. And he is -- the charge has been delivered to him last Wednesday. He never met her. He claimed that he never seen her. And he claims he is completely innocent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Let`s go straight out now to Amsterdam and reporter Coen Springkamp with "De Telegraaf." Now, another bombshell, I understand in this case, late this afternoon, we heard that tomorrow`s hearing for the suspect had been canceled. Tell us about this late development.

COEN SPRINGKAMP, "DE TELEGRAAF": Yes. That`s correct. I`ve spoken a few hours ago with Gerold Spong, the defense attorney for Guido. He told me that the evidence the public prosecutor has is not enough to keep him along (ph) in custody, so he will be released within a few hours from now, from jail (INAUDIBLE)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I am completely astounded by this development! What you`re telling me is that they arrest this man, they say they want to bring him back to Aruba with these very, very serious charges, and then they sort of say, Wait, never mind, we`ve got a deal, just stay available, be available for questioning in the Netherlands?

SPRINGKAMP: Yes. As you might know, Guido was arrested the 17th of May by special request of the Aruban public prosecutor. As you have heard, Mr. Spong said that his client denies all the allegations. But Aruban authorities wanted Guido back on the island as soon as possible for further interrogation. And according to his lawyer, Mr. Spong, that was nonsense (ph). It could be done in the Netherlands, as well.

But more important, the evidence they have on his client was very thin, he told me a few hours ago, and therefore, Guido`s lawyer requested a hearing to prevent his client being transferred back to Aruba. That hearing (INAUDIBLE) start within a few hours from now, but is canceled. And Mr. Spong was able to convince the Aruban public prosecutor that she had no case at all, that the evidence she had was very thin. So they decided -- they agreed that Guido will be released within a few hours but must be available for interrogation in the Netherlands upon request, but he remains a suspect.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Prosecutor Stacey Honowitz, try to help me understand and our viewers understand what`s going on. This doesn`t seem to make any sense. There`s a big development. They arrest this guy. They`ve been interrogating him for days in the Netherlands. They announce that he is a suspect on some very serious charges, according to his own attorney, allegedly suspected of assisting a murder, heavy (ph) battery. And then suddenly, well, never mind? It just boggles my mind!

STACEY HONOWITZ, PROSECUTOR: Well, Jane, none of us have the information. We don`t know what was discussed between the prosecutor and the defense attorney in this case. The only thing that I can tell you is they arrested him either based on inconsistencies, maybe in some of the statements, because I don`t know if most of your viewers know, he`s already been interrogated about five times -- I think three times in Aruba, two times over in Holland. Maybe they found some kind of inconsistency.

And as you know, they can arrest, not like here in the United States, where you need probable cause, he really just needs to be -- have something suspicious, suspicious behavior. So we don`t know what was worked out between the prosecutor and the defense attorney, unless it was stated that, Right now, we will agree to release him if he agrees to be interrogated, if he doesn`t flee, if he doesn`t leave. Now, those are pretty tough conditions to keep on somebody, and you really have to be able to trust that person that they will stay around for interrogation, so...

(CROSSTALK)

HONOWITZ: ... we don`t know what is really there.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: To me, what I`m confused about is the difference between saying, Hey, come on in, we want to talk to you, we think you know something, and, Hey, we`re going to charge you with something, we`re going to take you back to Aruba and prosecute you. Those are two wildly different things.

HONOWITZ: Well, of course, it`s two different things. And obviously, on May 17, they thought that they had enough to take him under arrest and charge him with these two crimes, manslaughter and murder, and even assisting in helping this murder. Things have changed drastically since then, within the last five or six days. From what the reporter said over in Amsterdam, the defense was able to convince the prosecutor that she had a very thin case.

Now, we weren`t present at the hearing. We don`t know. If some conditions were placed on him that, We still believe you`re a suspect, but we don`t need to keep you in custody, we want you to be available for further questioning. Also, we don`t know if he said something again when he was this custody this time that`s giving them a tip that maybe he has further information and can help them if he`s out of custody.

So again, we`re all sitting here. We`re all -- we don`t know what actually happened in this case.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. I gotcha, Stacey.

Let me go to Eric Marrapodi. He is our expert at the NANCY GRACE show on Aruba. Explain what`s going on here.

ERIC MARRAPODI, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Yes, Jane. What happened here was this young man, Guido W., as he was identified to me by his attorney, was brought into custody there in Holland. And the reason he was brought in -- a source very close to the investigation tells me tonight, the reason he was brought in is there were some inconsistencies in some statements made by Joran and the Kalpoe brothers early on in this investigation, in June.

Now, the other thing police wanted to know is his whereabouts that night Natalee disappeared. He was working there at the Excelsior casino, which is the casino there in the Holiday Inn. He got off early. That`s a new development we`re hearing tonight. Police wanted to know what happened after he got off early.

Now, the next day, in police statements, multiple sources have told us that Joran and Guido were hanging out, that they were together that day after Natalee Holloway disappeared.

Now, remember, Jane, back in April, there was a new lead investigator who took over this case. His name is Adolfo Richardson. And what we`ve seen is we`ve seen two new arrests since he has taken over. And the pattern with this arrest and release is very similar to the one we saw with Geoffrey Van Cromvoirt.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. And you bring up an absolutely important point, is the number of arrests in this case. This would mark arrest number 10. And we even have a graphic for you that can show you all the people who have been brought in and out throughout this process. It`s absolutely astounding.

First we had the two security guards who were brought in. They had alibis -- totally innocent. Then we had Joran Van Der Sloot. He is still a suspect. Then the Kalpoe brothers, of course. Then we had the party boat deejay, who was brought in after the Kalpoe brothers. And after this guy, the party boat deejay, we had Joran`s dad, Paulus Van Der Sloot. And then we had Geoffrey Van Cromvoirt who was caught and released, as Nancy wants to put it. Then a mysterious man by the name of "AB." And then we had this final gentleman, who has been brought in and released.

Don Clark, former head of Houston FBI, can you put this in a perspective? Have you ever heard of such a thing?

DON CLARK, FORMER HEAD OF FBI HOUSTON: Jane, it`s a very difficult one. And to try to put it in perspective, this is a foreign investigative strategy to me in all of my years. It just does not appear to me that there has been a consistent effort to try to collect their evidence and really get it in a pattern that they could try to trace to who the guilty party might be in this.

And if you just look at this recent arrest -- I look at this recent arrest and add a little technology to it, like key word. And the key word in this arrest that makes me think that it`s probably not going to go anyplace is the word "suspicion." Suspicious of being involved in kidnapping and killing tells me that you don`t have very much to charge a person with kidnapping and killing.

So I think what they really have to do, it`s almost like just scuttle everything, just shuffle it up again and really try to look at the evidence that they`ve got and see if they can find any real plausible leads and stop using this technique of going out, just grabbing somebody to bring them in and hoping that they`ll get some information from them.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And Beth Twitty, you are listening to all of this. What is your reaction to this latest bombshell on top of the other bombshell?

HONOWITZ: Oh, Jane, I mean, I think I`m just at a -- you know, I`m at a loss for words. I mean, you know, this just came by such a surprise, you know, just the arrest, and then, all of a sudden now, you know, he`s already -- you know, they`re already discussing releasing him tomorrow. And you know, I think it what is so frightening to us is we just hope that maybe they were able to get some information, you know, while they had this suspect in custody.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And of course, we have to say that this young man has simply been arrested. His attorney says he never met Natalee, that he is completely innocent, and certainly, he deserves the presumption of innocence.

In fact, his family has issued a very strong press release warning the media not to stalk, harass, slander or insult their family. And in fact, we have some full screens that we can read you to. "We are equal and we have rights and obligations. We are all innocent until proven guilty. This counts also for our son." It goes on. It`s a very lengthy statement. "We are all equal. No one is more equal than others. Although some American media may think otherwise, there is no better breed, there is no Aryan race. And finally, we will not be crucified on any television program. If anyone has anything to say, it should be with proof. If not, we will act."

Defense attorney Hillah Katz, what is your reaction to this very strong statement?

HILLAH KATZ, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, I think what they`re doing is instead of Guido himself coming out and professing his innocence, they`re trying to speak for him. So they`re allowing the attorney to speak for him, and they`re coming out with this family statement. And it speaks volumes because his attorney managed, rather than having the prosecution put up their probable cause hearing tomorrow, too, in fact, get their client released. So he basically asked the prosecution, Put up or shut up. And the press release basically speaks just as strongly as that attorney did, and it seems to have been a tactic that worked.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, we have so much more, we have barely scratched the surface. Stay with us. We`ll be back in a second.

To tonight`s "Case Alert." A mass shooting in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, leaves five family members dead and a sixth person fighting for their life. Twenty-five-year-old Anthony Bell facing multiple first degree murder charges for a shooting spree that began at a church Sunday. Among the victims, Bell`s wife, her grandparents, and aunt and a cousin.

Also tonight, a 19-year-old co-ed missing in Nebraska, Jessica O`Grady (ph), last seen more than week ago, her car found in a parking lot near her workplace. Police have searched the home of O`Grady`s boyfriend and classify the case as a criminal investigation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, sitting in tonight for Nancy Grace. We`re bringing you the latest now on a 19-old-year-old suspect arrested in the Netherlands in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway, the teenager`s family speaking out, warning he deserves the presumption of innocence.

Straight out to Little Rock, Arkansas, and Natalee`s mom, Beth Twitty. We are very pleased to have with us tonight. Beth, isn`t part of the concern the credibility, at this point, of the prosecutors? I mean, Nancy called it the "catch and release" program. They`ve caught and freed nine other people. One of the last ones, Geoffrey Van Cromvoirt, was released with virtually no explanation. And meantime, his name has been plastered all over the world. Do you worry that this is another red herring?

TWITTY: Well, Jane, of course, that is the concern. I mean, when we look at the list of suspects -- I mean, I believe there may even be one that we`ve missed. I mean, there was a Freddie (ph) (INAUDIBLE) that was arrested in August, and you know, he was discussed also as a person in person of interest in Natalee`s disappearance.

And you know, it is frightening, and you know, we just -- although it`s hard for me to believe, Jane, that they are not at least collecting evidence to lead them to the possibility of what happened to Natalee. I mean, I just have to feel, with this many suspects involved, and all of them, it seems like, have had either knowledge of her or contact with her, and it`s amazing that no one knows anything.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, you know, it`s kind of like arrest devaluation. If you make a lot of arrests, the value of them goes down.

We have been saying we`re going to take your calls, and we are. Let`s go to our first caller. Jamie in Arkansas, your question.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. I`d like to know -- obviously, because they obviously don`t know what they`re doing in Aruba, if maybe Natalee`s mother could maybe see the prosecutor or maybe Dompig, instead?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, Beth, do you want to take a try at that call?

TWITTY: Well, Jane, I better leave that in your hands. I think you know our attorney, John Kelly, really well, and I think you would know how he would want me to respond to that. So I`m going to let you do that, OK?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right.

And I want to go out to Jossy Mansur, managing director and editor of "Diario." Jossy, you`ve been observing all this. What`s the reaction in Aruba to all these arrests? I mean, if I were a parent of a teenage young man who was at that casino that night, I might be concerned. Is there concern on the island?

JOSSY MANSUR, MANAGING EDITOR, "DIARIO": Of course, there is. But they`re very interested (INAUDIBLE) in this new development because the opinion here in Aruba is that it would lead to something, something solid that would bring a closure to this case. But apparently, they`re going to release the man tomorrow. That news has not been publicized (INAUDIBLE) in Aruba yet. But I think that by seeing the program, the people in Aruba are becoming aware that there`s another arrest and release within days.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, it`s not just frustrating for Beth, it`s frustrating for the entire people of Aruba.

Ellen, North Carolina, your question.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, ma`am. These boys sound like the pimp game (ph) to me. But my question is, with Paulus Van Der Sloot in training to be a judge and trying to get that position back -- and I understand that Guido`s father is in political office in the Netherlands -- do you not think that this has something to do with these boys getting by with all this? Somebody`s looking after them.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, Jossy, what do you make of that? They`re saying, basically, it`s inside baseball, that everybody knows each other.

MANSUR: Well, this is a small community. Of course, everybody knows each other. But I don`t see any relationship between, for example, the father of Guido and Paulus Van Der Sloot. The father of Guido is a political leader in Aruba. He is the leader of a political party called Allianza (ph) that participated in two elections, didn`t get any seats. But I don`t see any relations there, no.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. And we`re going to learn more about the family in a moment.

To tonight`s "Case Alert." A body pulled from the Missouri River in Iowa has been identified as 35-year-old Tracy Tribble. Tribble had been missing since May 3, her body identified through dental records and tattoos. Police say this is an ongoing investigation. No charges have been filed. Tribble`s husband is considered a person of interest in the case.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She had a fun childhood. I had a fun Tracy`s childhood. I loved her so much!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TWITTY: When I see Natalee`s friends, I think about the things that Natalee has missed in her life, the most difficult thing that we deal with on a daily basis as, you know, I know now that Natalee -- Natalee should almost be a sophomore in college.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell, in for Nancy Grace tonight. Is the latest suspect arrested in the Natalee Holloway case the missing link to solving this nearly 1-year-old case? That`s right, at the end of this month, it will be the year anniversary.

Jossy Mansur, editor of "Diario" newspaper, how has Aruba been impacted in the past year? I spoke with one Aruban business leader. He told me tourism`s down. The Arubans feel their entire island has been unfairly tarnished by the media because of this.

MANSUR: Well, the tourism is down. I mean, the official figures show a decrease of a certain percentage. It hasn`t been affected totally or in a serious degree, but it has been affected by this. And the Aruban people are concerned, not because of that but because of the girl that`s missing, and they want a closure to this because it`s dragging on too long now. It`s going for a year.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And Beth, I see a commonality between your interests and the interests of the Aruban people, in the sense that everybody would benefit from a resolution in this case. I mean, one of the reasons why the media covers it so much is that there hasn`t been any answer.

TWITTY: Oh, absolutely, Jane. And you know, Jane, any time I can get it out, especially on CNN, we just want to keep that reward money out there and to let these witnesses know that it is there, $250,000 for just any information that leads to her whereabouts. And I just feel with so many people involved, somebody surely has something that they can come forward with and feel comfortable in doing so because we need a resolution so badly. The island of Aruba does, and we do.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Everybody does. And I think that, you know, political scientists will say one of the reasons why this is so fascinating is because we don`t have an answer. So it`s like an ongoing soap opera, and I think everybody wants closure at this point.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell sitting in for Nancy Grace. Tonight, we`re bring you the very latest development in the Natalee Holloway case. A 19-year-old suspect is in custody in the Netherlands. Is it the big break we have been waiting for?

Here tonight, Beth Twitty, Natalee`s mom.

And, Beth, I want to ask you: How are you coping emotionally? Is it getting harder as time passes or easier?

TWITTY: You know, Jane, that`s funny that you asked that, because, you know, you would think, as time goes on, that it would become a little easier to deal with the emotional ups and downs. But, you know, tonight, when I`m hearing again, you know, how we just get our hopes up, another arrest, and then he`s released, and we still have no answers, you know, it`s just getting more and more difficult, Jane. I really can`t believe that it can even get more difficult.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, I certainly can understand that.

And let`s go to psychologist Patricia Saunders. You`ve dealt with families of victims, people who just have no closure. Is it like a festering sore that gets worse and worse?

DR. PATRICIA SAUNDERS, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: There`s no reason to think it`s going to get better with time. What Beth is describing is, really, the worst kind of loss. It`s ambiguous loss.

This family is frozen between hope and despair; they`re stuck between wanting to hold on and letting go. There`s no comfort for rituals, because they don`t have any answers, and I`ll bet even friends, if not family, are kind of torn between wanting to be optimistic and hopeful with you, and wanting to be sympathetic and, you know, offer condolences.

There is no easy way. It does get worse with time. What is so positive is that Natalee`s mom and her dad, too, have been so active in reaching out and not just sitting there waiting for officials to give them news, and that`s the best therapy that any family can do for themselves.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And, Beth, in fact, you go to schools and you urge young women, if you`re going to a foreign country, make sure to activate your international calling, because that`s something that, apparently, Natalee did not do, correct?

TWITTY: It is, Jane. And, you know, and I in no way want to discourage traveling internationally. I mean, Natalee was going to be in the international honor`s program at the University of Alabama. And, you know, a lot of her friends are traveling internationally. I just want them to be prepared and I just want them to be informed so they can travel more safely.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And let`s hear from the attorney of this latest suspect. He describes how his involvement in the case came about.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GERARD SPONG, ATTORNEY FOR GUIDO WEVER: He was a witness in June last year, after days Natalee disappeared. And since February of this year, he is now a suspect, and the prosecution in Aruba is wanting him very quickly. He is still in the Netherlands, and is being questioned every day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: What we`re trying to do, without jumping to any unwarranted conclusions, is to try to figure out where this young man fits in the puzzle, if he fits at all. Again, he has a presumption of innocence.

But let`s go to private investigator Vito Colucci. You`ve been listening to all this. We`ve heard that this young man, apparently, allegedly is friends with Joran. They were both at the casino that night, the very last night of the high school vacation. What do you make of why this young man was arrested and how he helps explain this mystery?

VITO COLUCCI, PRIVATE DETECTIVE: Well, what I`d like to know, Jane, is what was gleaned from their interviews of him, especially at the beginning. Because we know he was with Joran the day after Natalee disappeared. So what did Joran say about his conversations with Guido? What did Guido say? And you comparing notes.

So, to me, that speaks volumes. I`d like to see what happened on that and where this has gone.

You know, when I talked to your producer today, I saw the key word, "assisting in the murder." So I`m saying to myself, "All right, who did he assist?" That jumped out to me. OK, maybe he`s a possible key player. Maybe he assisted somebody else, and they really needed to bring this guy to Aruba to see if he is, in fact, at least culpable, and maybe he had information on some of the other players.

But he`s been in the radar screen now, from what we`ve seen, from the first week of this, Jane.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, that`s what I don`t understand. NANCY GRACE Aruba expert Eric Marrapodi, they interviewed this guy a couple of days after Natalee disappeared. At that point, they undoubtedly had his schedule, the fact that he left early and that his whereabouts were unaccounted for later that evening. What now, almost a year later?

MARRAPODI: Well, I think what Aruban authorities are trying to do, if my sources are right, is just trying to fit those pieces in the puzzle together and tighten some loose ends there with the investigation, as they`re going through and going back to the beginning and starting over and making sure they`ve chased down every lead.

And what happened with this young man is, shortly after he was questioned by police in June, he headed off to Holland. Now, that`s not a suggestion of guilt, I don`t think, at all, but he went over there to study, to finish high school, and then to go on to some higher education over there.

And police wanted to track him down and ask him some more questions. And as they`ve gone back and seen his name reappear in some of those earlier statements from Joran, some of those earlier statements from Satish and Deepak, they wanted to go back, and check it out, and make sure they knew where he was when Natalee disappeared, because, as my sources have told me tonight, he left that shift early at the Holiday Inn and couldn`t be accounted for after that, and they really wanted to tighten that up.

Now, is that enough to continue to hold him? Perhaps not. And, as we`ve seen tonight, Mr. Spong, his attorney, has brokered a deal with Karen Janssen and saying, no, it`s not enough to continue to hold him in this pretrial detention, as we saw with some of the other boys, which goes back to that suggestion this may have only been an assistance role that the police think that he was involved in with this case, and perhaps not in anything more than that.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wow, so fascinating. We have so many callers standing by wanting to ask questions. Let`s go to Ellen in Michigan, your question?

CALLER: Good evening, Jane. Good evening, Beth.

First of all, Beth, I would just like to say that, if ever had to go through this experience in my life, I just hope that I could have your courage, and your grace, and your dignity that you have shown throughout this. And I think that you really are a true American hero.

My question for you, Beth, is: Do you think, with all these recent arrests that have occurred, and since Dompig is now out of the picture, that they are really trying to put a new face on the Aruban law enforcement and trying to bring up tourism with that?

TWITTY: Well, just to respond to your question, the first part, you know, the reason why I have been able to, you know, remain so focused and strong during this is for supporters like you, and I am forever grateful.

And, yes, I agree with you. I think that, you know, we`ve seen a resurgence in the prosecution in wanting to have a resolution. And so, you know, that`s a good thing. That`s a positive sign.

And we just hope that, as they are arresting these new suspects, that they are gathering, you know, new information that will lead to actually what happened that night with Natalee.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: And we have another question from Joann in Alabama. What is your question, Joann?

CALLER: Well, first of all, I want to say I agree with Ellen. I just totally admire Beth and Dave, have read the book, and who are praying every day for this situation.

But my question is this: I would like to know, if we know who is paying this high-priced attorney that the Van Der Sloots have in the United States and, also, who is paying this high-priced attorney over in the Netherlands? Where is that money coming from?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, let`s take that out to Jossy Mansur, managing director and editor of "Diario." Jossy, what do you know about the prominence of the family of this latest suspect? Because, apparently, the attorney they hired in the Netherlands is one of the top attorneys in Europe.

MANSUR: Well, from what we know about them, they`re not very rich people, none of them, not Paulus, not the father of Guido, surely not the Kalpoe brothers. So the question of the lady is very important.

I would like to know, also, who is paying the battery of lawyers here in Aruba, who is paying the lawyer in New York, and who is paying for the lawyer, this very high-priced lawyer in Holland.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Well, let`s bring our expert, Eric Marrapodi, can you offer some insight, Eric, into this legal situation and who`s paying the bills?

MARRAPODI: Yes. As for who`s paying the bills, that`s a question yet to be answered. But, Jane, I can tell you, in the beginning, Joran Van Der Sloot had about three attorneys, Richie Kock (ph), Antonio Carlo, Arianda Bee (ph). The Kalpoe brothers each had their own attorney. Now they`re just being represented by David Kock and Elgin Zeppenveldt.

And, of course, now with the civil suit, we have Joe Tacopina has entered the picture and is representing Paulus and Joran Van Der Sloot in the civil suit, as that`s taking place here in New York City.

So it`s a question that`s still up in the air. And like people are saying, you know, Mr. Spong, Gerhard Spong, one of the best attorneys. We understand tonight that he even at one point had helped in the defense counsel of Slobodan Milosevic when he was being tried in the Hague. So certainly no spring chicken there in Europe.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: In fact, this would be the equivalent of hiring a Johnny Cochran or some of the famous attorneys that we have seen handling some of the biggest cases in the United States, wouldn`t that be true?

MARRAPODI: Yes, absolutely. And people we talked to tonight said don`t make that assumption that, because they`ve hired Mr. Spong, that there is any assumption of guilt here. And as his parents have said, you know, he still has that presumption of innocence, and they don`t even have enough to continue that pretrial detention tonight. So Mr. Spong, whoever is paying him, they`re certainly getting their money`s worth out of him tonight.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right, Eric, thank you. We at NANCY GRACE want very much to help in our own way solve unsolved homicides, find missing people. Tonight, take a look at 19-year-old Kassie Federer, killed on September 13, 1999, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

If you have any information on Kassie Federer`s homicide, please call the Carole Sund Carrington Foundation toll-free, 1-888-813-8389.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell in for Nancy Grace tonight. Almost one year ago, Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway went missing without a trace in Aruba. Tonight, authorities in the Netherlands have arrested a suspect in the case.

Now, prosecutor Stacey Honowitz, this young man has been in jail since last Wednesday. He`s been interrogated daily, I`m told. You`d think if -- and it`s a big if -- if he had the key to the puzzle, he would have said whatever he had to say by now. He would have cracked.

What doesn`t make is, if there is a crime that involves several people, especially young people, how can all of these young people stay bandied together and not crack when even many hardened criminals would have turned by now?

HONOWITZ: Well, first of all, Jane, we don`t know what came out of this hearing. Again, we had some breaking news before you went on the air tonight that he was getting released. I`m sure we`ll hear some more things tomorrow, when the hearing was supposed to be.

In this case, like I said earlier, he obviously gave some statements that maybe were inconsistent from way back, and they are going back with this new investigator and they`re trying to find out and fit all the pieces together.

If they are banding together, if they know something, it is kind of hard to believe that no one would crack yet. Like I said earlier, maybe he was just a witness earlier, became a suspect. He`s given some information, and we`ll find out what`s to come.

But it is hard. It`s a hard case, but I think that everyone has to be mindful of one thing, that sometimes murder cases, very bad cases, aren`t solved within a year. We keep saying it`s been a year. Sometimes cases go many years before they`re cracked.

And I think Beth has to keep the faith that something is going to happen. We`ve had several cases, the Skakel case happened years later. He was arrested. The priest, 26 years later, last week was convicted in a courtroom for the nun`s murder.

So she has to keep the faith, and we have to hope that, even though their method and their process of doing business and whatever they`re doing right now doesn`t seem to be working, maybe all the pieces of the puzzle will come together at one point.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. I think you make an excellent point. And, remember, that just because this man`s been arrested doesn`t mean that it exonerates Joran Van Der Sloot.

Let`s listen to what Joran, who remains a suspect, said about what happened that fateful night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How do you leave a girl on the beach?

JORAN VAN DER SLOOT, LAST SEEN WITH NATALEE HOLLOWAY: I told her I had to go home. I had school the next day, and I thought maybe she`d understand. She told me, no, she wanted me to stay there with her because the next day she was leaving and she wanted to stay there the whole night.

I told her, no, I had to go. I even lifted her up to carry her back to her hotel. And she told me put her down. I left her there. I sat down next to her, talked to her a while. And I called Deepak to ask him if he could come pick me up, which Deepak didn`t do, but...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was she angry?

VAN DER SLOOT: She wasn`t angry. If it`s anything, she was probably more upset that I was leaving her there. And I don`t know what reaction she had. I don`t know.

At the time, I didn`t feel it was a bad idea. At the time, I really didn`t. It didn`t seem wrong. It didn`t seem -- of course, now I look back at it, and I think (bleep) I`m an (bleep). What did I do? But there`s nothing I can do about it now.

If I could have that moment back, I would have made sure she got back to her hotel room safely, but I can`t change that now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Investigative reporter Leslie Snadowsky, you have covered so many big cases. Everybody says, "Well, why are we covering this case so much?" It`s because something doesn`t add up, something doesn`t make sense fundamentally. No body, no crime is what they say. You have all of these explanations; you have all these people being brought in.

What do you make of this? Is there some kind of big picture that we`re missing?

SNADOWSKY: I think, with the most recent developments, that the most interesting thing is, is the relationship between Guido and Joran.

Now, earlier on, about a week or two ago -- excuse me, I guess Wednesday it would be -- Gerald Spong said that Joran and Guido never met, they weren`t friends. I think just today he conceded that, no, they were acquaintances.

But Joran`s own attorney said, no, the kids knew each other. They went to the tennis club together in Aruba. They were nightclubbing, casino hopping. I mean, where is the truth? I mean, I think the relationship between these two I think is very, very interesting and should be explored some more.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Don Clark, former head of the FBI Houston division, you know, Stacey just made some really important points there, the shifting stories like the shifting sands on the island?

CLARK: Well, they are shifting stories and they have been shifting stories, Jane. But, you know, this thing kind of reminds me of kind of being a running back. If you stumble getting out of the backfield, you don`t usually make it very far.

And the same thing with an investigation. If you start making mistakes and fumbling at the beginning, it`s very, very difficult to overcome those. And we`ve got to bear in mind that investigations do a couple of things.

Number one, clearly you want to be able to identify evidence and the facts in the case, but you also want to be able to eliminate suspects that perhaps you don`t have to deal with again. And I haven`t seen that take place. And I certainly haven`t seen the effort to bring in credible people, such as profilers, and psychologists, and other type of really strong investigators to see if they can bring this information out that they really need in this case.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Don, thank you.

Quickly to tonight`s "All-Points Bulletin." FBI and law enforcement across the country on the lookout for Jose Gustavo Badillo, wanted in connection with the rape and molestation of a minor female in Oklahoma.

This suspect, 36, 5`9", approximately 190 pounds, black hair, brown eyes. If you have any information on him, please call the FBI at 405-290- 7770.

Local news next for some of you. We will all be right back. And, remember, live coverage of a South Carolina man on trial for murder and burglary, 3:00 to 5:00 Eastern, Court TV.

Please stay with us as we remember Sergeant Israel Garcia, 23, Clint, Texas, killed in Iraq. He was granted U.S. citizenships minutes before he was laid to rest. Garcia, an American hero.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: As we continue our examination of the latest developments in the Natalee Holloway case, let`s go to the callers. We`ve got Sue in Canada. Your question?

CALLER: My question is, as a croupier, was Guido Wever able to extend a line of credit to Joran Van Der Sloot? And would any pressure to repair this line of credit, in kind or in cash, possibly lead to a trade, which would leave us with a living Natalee Holloway? Could we possibly examine this line of questioning?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Wow. OK. That`s a new one.

Jossy, you want to take a shot at that one?

MANSUR: Well, it`s possible. But I don`t think that Guido as a croupier, as a dealer, would have the authority to extend any line of credit to any player, much less a minor like Joran. It`s not normally done. The casino manager would be the one and the owner or the director of the casino would be the ones that are authorized to extend lines of credit to gamble.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: You know, I want to go to Patricia Saunders, clinical psychologist, as we wrap up. You heard that excellent question. People really trying to use their minds and crack this mystery. Everybody`s putting on their Sherlock Holmes hat because there are no answers.

Do you think the prosecutor, for example, should now hold a news conference and say, "Hey, here`s where we stand"? Because one of the reasons why everybody is so obsessed is that there are no answers.

SAUNDERS: Well, it`s certainly causing everybody a lot of anxiety. At this point, I think -- I`m thinking of Natalee`s family that -- I`m hoping that the civil trial will give them some satisfaction, maybe answers.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to thank all of our guests tonight for their insight. We want to thank our callers for calling in and asking some excellent questions. And thanks to you at home for tracking these very important cases with us.

I`m Jane Velez-Mitchell in for Nancy Grace. Nancy is back tomorrow, and we certainly hope to see you right here, Tuesday night, 8:00 sharp Eastern. Until then, have a great evening.

END