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Nancy Grace
Peru Says Van Der Sloot Killed Stephany With Baseball Bat
Aired June 04, 2010 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JEAN CASAREZ, HOST: We begin tonight with breaking news in the disappearance of American girl Natalee Holloway. Just when he thinks he will walk on murder charges in the death of Holloway, another young woman turns up dead, allegedly at the hands of Joran Van Der Sloot, Van Der Sloot accused of murdering a 21-year-old beautiful woman he meets in a casino in his hotel room in Lima, Peru.
Major developments tonight. As we go to air and police confirm the murder weapon, a baseball bat. After secretly skipping town, going on the run in Chile, Van Der Sloot captured. Joran Van Der Sloot thrown out of Chile. That`s right, they don`t want him! Authorities hauling him back to Peru strapped in a bulletproof vest in case somebody is trying to kill him.
And it`s not over yet, Van Der Sloot. He is now wanted by U.S. authorities in Birmingham, Alabama. The murder suspect allegedly tried to sell the location of Natalee Holloway`s body to Holloway`s own mother. The price tag, $250,000.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joran Van Der Sloot taken into custody in Peru.
NANCY GRACE, HOST: ... arrested, in custody, captured...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): How do you know she`s dead, Joran?
JORAN VAN DER SLOOT (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I just know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have breaking news.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Authorities are handing over Van Der Sloot to face charges in the brutal killing of a 21-year-old woman in Lima.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was traveling alone in a taxi when he was arrested.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... wanted for murder...
DAVE HOLLOWAY, NATALEE`S FATHER: I just hope that he comes clean.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was arrested on route 68.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He beat her up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... multiple stab wounds...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): This time, he won`t be able to walk away.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her face, her body -- we can`t recognize her.
HOLLOWAY: He`s got an account to settle, and I hope he settles it on this earth.
GRACE: A case of extortion has been announced...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Efforts by Van Der Sloot to extort $250,000 for information about the location of Natalee Holloway`s remains.
VAN DER SLOOT (through translator): This is what she did.
BETH TWITTY, NATALEE`S MOTHER: It`s just despicable what he has done.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He`s a very, very dangerous man.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Will justice finally prevail?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are confident that justice will be done.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We want justice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: Good evening. I`m Jean Casarez of the legal network "In Session," in for Nancy Grace tonight. Thank you so much for joining us. Breaking news tonight. Police confirm the murder weapon, a baseball bat. As authorities haul murder suspect Joran Van Der Sloot back to Peru, Peru says, We want him. We want justice.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joran Van Der Sloot transferred to the custody of authorities in Peru.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was being flown by the Chilean military from the capital of Chile, Santiago, into the town of Arica.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is the prime suspect in the murder of a 21- year-old woman in Peru.
ENRIQUE FLORES, STEPHANY`S BROTHER: She didn`t even have an eye. She was unrecognizable.
GRACE: He has been free to murder again.
VAN DER SLOOT (through translator): I just touched her and there wasn`t anything anymore. It was over.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s been five years, and ironically, five years to the day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This case is an absolute nightmare already.
VAN DER SLOOT (through translator): I was talking to her, talking to her, talking to her, and she didn`t say nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There`s lies. There`s no decency in him at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We will be able to show that he is the killer and he won`t be able to walk away like he did in Aruba.
HOLLOWAY: ... total disregard for anyone else except for himself.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Did you try to resuscitate her?
VAN DER SLOOT (through translator): I tried everything. I even lifted her up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He thought he was off the hook. He considered himself as a winner.
HOLLOWAY: He`s tried to avoid this justice system.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Van Der Sloot could spend the next 35 years of his life in prison.
HOLLOWAY: I`d be surprised if he told the truth this time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: All right, we are going to take your calls live tonight. We do have Rafael Romo on the ground in Lima, Peru. He is the senior CNN Latin American affairs editor.
But first to NANCY GRACE producer Rupa Mikkilineni. Rupa, you have just confirmed with law enforcement what they say the murder weapon used to kill Stephany Flores was.
RUPA MIKKILINENI, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: That`s right, Jean. Big news tonight. For the first time, Peruvian authorities have confirmed to us that the murder weapon is a baseball bat, a baseball bat found in the hotel room along with Flores`s body.
CASAREZ: Tell us more. Where was -- was the baseball bat near the body? Was it in the closet? Was it in one piece? Did it have blood all over it?
MIKKILINENI: Jean, we don`t know those details. All we`ve been able to confirm -- and as you know, all along we`ve been hearing reports from police and from various sources that they have a mountain of evidence against Joran Van Der Sloot, and now we`re hearing what some of that evidence is, and this is the murder weapon.
CASAREZ: Rupa, it all adds up because we heard her face was bashed in, her neck was broken, her body was bruised from head to toe.
Let us go now to the ground in Lima, Peru, Rafael Romo, CNN`s senior Latin American affairs editor. Rafael, what`s the latest?
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SR. LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: Well, Jean, now we can tell you that the suspect is here in Peruvian territory. He crossed the border just a few hours ago. And Peruvian officials are getting ready to press charges, homicide charges, against him for the death of Stephany Flores.
He crossed the border this afternoon, and there was a bit of a chaotic situation there because there was a multitude of people shouting obscenities. And at one point, between all the media there and also the people who were visibly angry, it almost turned into a mob scene there. And so we understand that authorities decided that he need to wear a bulletproof vest for his protection.
CASAREZ: And Rafael, we have...
ROMO: They`re taking him to a police station there for medical assessment.
CASAREZ: ... got world-exclusive video. We have just gotten world- exclusive video of Joran Van Der Sloot in that bulletproof vest. There he is, right there. For the first time, this video is being released tonight. You see him today being transported, walking with a bulletproof vest.
Now, Rafael, we understand that he went from Santiago to the border. He flew, is that correct, in a military plane? Rafael, do I have you? All right, it looks like we are waiting for Rafael`s satellite to come back up.
To Rupa Mikkilineni. What do we know about how he went from Santiago to the border, and then ultimately, into further Peru?
MIKKILINENI: Right. He was flown on a Cessna, which is a very small plane. It`s a military plane. He was flown in from Santiago to the border town between Chile and Peru, which is Arica, which is, actually, you may recall, when he was escaping and fleeing to Chile, it`s a town that he took a taxi to. And then he arrived this afternoon in Peru and he is en route by airplane to Lima. I believe he`s about to arrive in Lima this evening in about two hours.
CASAREZ: All right, in that bulletproof vest because of all those protesters. We will go back to Rafael as soon as we get the satellite back up.
But out to Cecilia in Illinois. Cecilia, how are you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Fine. Fine.
CASAREZ: Good evening. Your question?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m curious, where is his mother in all of this? Is she even aware? Has he spoke to her?
CASAREZ: To Joran Van Der Sloot`s mother. Let`s see what we know. Rupa Mikkilineni, do we know anything about Joran`s mother?
MIKKILINENI: We do. She is in Aruba right now. As you know, her husband passed away recently. This is Joran Van Der Sloot`s father. And we have a statement from the family attorney saying that she is shocked and devastated.
CASAREZ: All right. And we also know through attorneys that his mother did not know where was. He was not with her in Aruba, was not in the Netherlands, didn`t know where he was until she heard it for herself on television.
I want to go to a very special guest tonight who is mourning not only for the Flores family but also for Natalee Holloway`s family. That`s because she is the relative, the aunt of Natalee Holloway. Linda Allison is with us tonight.
Linda, thank you so much. And this is such a tragic week for you. It is the fifth anniversary of the last time any of you saw Natalee herself. We want to ask you tonight, when you first heard about what had happened in Peru and that the suspect was Joran Van Der Sloot, what was the thought in your mind?
LINDA ALLISON, NATALEE HOLLOWAY`S AUNT: First -- just the first thought that came to my mind is, Surely this is not happening again, that he would take someone`s life and have left the country. Just -- we`ve just all been devastated by it, and it brings up all those raw emotions again that we dealt with five years ago.
CASAREZ: Have you spoken with the family at all? We learned tonight that they want to talk with you. And the funeral was last night. They are exhausted, but they want to communicate with you.
ALLISON: Yes, I did speak with your producer tonight, and they have sent information out to our family e-mail addresses. So we`re going to get in contact with the family. And our heart goes out to that family. We certainly extend our sympathy to them because I know it`s a very difficult time right now.
CASAREZ: It is, and her funeral was last night.
To Kim in Florida. Kim, hi. Good evening.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good evening. I am just curious, due to the extent of the injuries, were there any reports in the hotel of noise coming from that room? Have people in rooms next door been interviewed?
CASAREZ: Oh, that`s a very good question. To Pat Brown, criminal profiler. Obviously, an investigation is going on, a crime scene investigation. That`s going to be one of the first things that they ask of guests of adjoining rooms, right?
PAT BROWN, CRIMINAL PROFILER: You would think so, Jean. I mean, obviously, if a woman`s being beaten to death with a baseball bat, you`d think there would be some kind of noise coming out of that room.
But I`ll tell you, what`s really interesting about this baseball bat. Joran`s -- probably his defense is that he was going to conjure up the, I had to defend myself against this girl, or it was an accident. We`re talking about major disparity of force here. He -- you know, he couldn`t say he just accidentally pushed her and she hit her head on the wall and that was the end of things. I mean, we`re talking about a man who picked up a baseball bat and beat a woman to death. He`s not going to get away with any kind of defense now. He`s -- he`s really cooked on this one. And I`m so glad.
CASAREZ: And we want to reiterate so everybody can know...
BROWN: Only alleged.
CASAREZ: ... we have just learned that authorities are saying it was a baseball bat that was the murder weapon in this case, that bashed this woman until she took her last breath.
I want to go out to Sheryl McCollum, crime analyst, director of cold case squad, Pine Lake PD. When you hear about that it was a baseball bat, what comes to your mind? I mean, that is violence that I think is almost unequalled.
SHERYL MCCOLLUM, CRIME ANALYST: It is absolutely brutal. But the good news forensically, Jean, is his touch DNA will be on that baseball bat. Hopefully, a bloody fingerprint will also be on that baseball bat. So hopefully, from a scientific standpoint, it will point to him absolutely conclusively.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Many people, including myself, thought that Joran Van Der Sloot would strike again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Did you try to resuscitate her?
VAN DER SLOOT (through translator): I tried everything. I even lifted her up.
GRACE: However, I considered the fact that maybe he`s not that stupid as to kill again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... too much coincidence.
HOLLOWAY: He`s tried to avoid this justice system for a long time.
GRACE: But obviously, he is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joran Van Der Sloot...
GRACE: ... chief suspect...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... transferred to the custody of authorities in Peru.
GRACE: ... in the murder of a 21-year-old Peruvian girl.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a foreign national in a foreign country.
GRACE: ... five years later...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He`s killed a young woman in their country.
GRACE: ... Stephany Tatiana Flores Ramirez...
What does he do? Van Der Sloot runs!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was traveling by taxi in Chile.
GRACE: ... his appearance totally altered to elude police.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a $40-a-night room.
GRACE: The body was not only stabbed repeatedly...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... vanished during a trip to Aruba back in 2005.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It could be that the anniversary of Natalee`s disappearance might have triggered rage about what`s happened to his life.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Flores`s neck was broken by blunt force trauma.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... his unstable emotional abilities, the need for immediate gratification...
GRACE: ... a case of extortion...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... charged with extortion and wire fraud.
GRACE: Joran Van Der Sloot attempted to extort $50,000...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He tried to sell details about Natalee Holloway`s death.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Parents of Stephany Flores held onto her favorite teddy bear as they said their final good-bye at her funeral.
GRACE: Look at that smile! She should be planning her future.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: All right, I`m Jean Casarez, in for Nancy Grace tonight. We are learning right now that Joran Van Der Sloot is in transit to Lima, Peru. He is in Peru at this moment, but in transit. He is wearing a bulletproof vest. You`re looking at world-exclusive video right there, released for the very first time tonight, of Joran Van Der Sloot in that bulletproof vest. Why a bulletproof vest? Because they`re concerned that the Peruvian people will want to kill him because they believed he killed one of their own.
Let`s go out to the callers. Hope in Texas. Hi, Hope.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi. I had a question.
CASAREZ: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With this latest news about her injuries, Stephany`s injuries -- and my heart, my thoughts and my prayers go out to both families in this case, and I don`t mean to be disrespectful. But doesn`t it seem like he was in waiting for her, in that -- I mean, where do you pick up a baseball bat in Peru, you know, at 5:00 o`clock in the morning? So it sounds to me like this is a premeditated act.
CASAREZ: You know, Hope, you have some good questions right there. And for anyone just joining us, we have just confirmed that law enforcement is saying that it was a baseball bat, that that was the murder weapon used to kill Stephany Flores.
Let`s go out to Wendy Walsh, Ph.D., psychologist and expert on Momlogic.com. How does it make sense to you, in a psychological sense, that there are a number of ways to kill someone, but with a baseball bat -- that is very brutal and very personal.
WENDY WALSH, PSYCHOLOGIST: Yes, this is somebody who has a lot of rage towards women, and I have no doubt that he lives a very paranoid existence five years later. And here he was trying to extort money and running from authorities. This is a guy who probably sleeps with a baseball bat anyway.
But as I understand, some of the reports told me earlier that when he was in the casino, that this young woman was winning big. So imagine if you already hate women, already on some deep psychological level, you`re reminded that five years ago, you were a monster that didn`t get convicted. And then here`s a woman being rewarded, when he`s living hand to mouth, trying to extort money from people. Imagine that! So he says, Come back to my hotel room and we can celebrate your winnings. He wanted her money as much as he wanted to kill her, in my opinion.
CASAREZ: And what you`re saying is that CBS News has been reporting that there is $5,000 in winnings that Stephany Flores had won that night. It was gone. And law enforcement, according to CBS News, is saying that Joran Van Der Sloot stole it.
I believe we do have Rafael Romo, CNN`s Senior Latin American affairs editor, by phone. Rafael, are you there?
ROMO (via telephone): I`m here, yes.
CASAREZ: Rafael, describe for us again the scene when Joran Van Der Sloot got into Peru from Chile earlier today.
ROMO: Well, a bunch of people had been waiting for him for several hours, and many journalists but many more people who just wanted to get a glimpse. And as soon as he crossed the border, people started shouting obscenities. And it became a very chaotic situation, people trying to get close to him. Police had to set up a perimeter for the suspect`s safety. And so at one point, people started pushing. It didn`t grow any bigger, but it was a very tense, very chaotic situation. And then authorities decided that he needed to wear a bulletproof vest. So that`s what they did.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now that Joran Van Der Sloot...
GRACE: ... Joran Van Der Sloot...
TWITTY: ... Van Der Sloot...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: An international manhunt for Joran Van Der Sloot is over.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean, he has been on a downward spiral.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... Van Der Sloot...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In interviews, Van Der Sloot denied accusations of rape and murder.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joran Van Der Sloot`s already told four or five different stories about what happened.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Will Joran Van Der Sloot strike again?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: His life as he knew it before, of luxury and travel, that`s about to end.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This was a poker championship.
GRACE: ... alleged two-time killer...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... allegedly stolen some money from this victim.
GRACE: ... chief suspect in the murder of a 21-year-old Peruvian girl, Stephany Tatiana Flores Ramirez.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What about the extortion sting?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He would tell someone the whereabouts of Natalee Holloway`s body.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This could all be about money.
GRACE: His daddy`s not around to protect him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: I`m Jean Casarez of the legal network "In Session," in for Nancy Grace tonight.
We`ve got a very, very special guest that is joining us now from Lima, Peru. His name is Ricardo Flores. He is the brother of Stephany Flores. Ricardo, muchos gracias (INAUDIBLE) mucho gusto. We want to thank you so much for joining us tonight. Thank you for doing this interview in English with us. We send our condolences, the shock that you must be in. We know that the funeral of Stephany was last night.
When did you find out that something so terrible had happened to someone that you cared about so much?
RICARDO FLORES, STEPHANY`S BROTHER (via telephone): Actually, Monday, we thought my sister was kidnapped. But (INAUDIBLE) asked for the money, for the reward (INAUDIBLE) we start to worry about. And then we went to the casino and saw the (INAUDIBLE) video, I saw my sister walking out of the casino with this guy. That`s (INAUDIBLE) we know this was (INAUDIBLE)
CASAREZ: So you saw the video of your sister at the casino?
FLORES: Yes. We saw my sister walking out the casino with this guy.
CASAREZ: And you saw Joran Van Der Sloot sitting near her?
FLORES: Yes, we saw it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Van Der Sloot was arrested twice in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Once he is captured, we will be able to show that he is the killer.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The international manhunt for Joran Van Der Sloot is over.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): He won`t be able to walk away like he did in Aruba.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Captured.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joran Van Der Sloot.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think he is a very arrogant psychopath.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Joran Van Der Sloot --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Wanted to come through the TV and kill him, I mean, peel the skin off his face.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joran Van Der Sloot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He`s got an account to settle.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The main suspect in the Natalee Holloway disappearance.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Admitting he lies to people.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I tried everything.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Van Der Sloot has said he sold her into the sex trade.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She didn`t say nothing, nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They were all "lies."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is going on?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He said he threw her in the ocean.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was over.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joran has lied from the beginning.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police believe that Van Der Sloot killed 21- year-old Stephany Flores.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was found dead wrapped in a blanket from Joran Van Der Sloot`s own hotel room, brutally beaten, her neck broken.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We want justice. We are waiting for that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Swift justice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We can get justice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My journey for justice has not ended.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Joran Van Der Sloot taken into custody.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The police chief said "incriminating evidence."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This killer is going to pay.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is going to pay the price sooner or later.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE He is going to pay for what he`s done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: I`m Jean Casarez of the Legal Network "In Session" in for Nancy Grace tonight. Law enforcement is confirming that Joran Van Der Sloot is in transit at this moment this evening to Lima, Peru. They also are confirming that he has spoken to them, denying that he killed Stephany Flores, but admitting that he was with her that night in the casino.
You also are watching world-exclusive video released for the first time just minutes ago of Joran Van Der Sloot in that bullet-proof vest, because as you see, the people of Peru are there to meet him as he comes. They want justice. Although he`s denying what he did, according to police, they are saying we want justice.
And now they are releasing the murder weapon. Rupa Mikkilineni, you confirmed moments before we went on air tonight what authorities are saying was that murder weapon.
MIKKILINENI: That`s right, Jean. We heard from authorities tonight that the murder weapon was found and it is a baseball bat that was found in the hotel room with Stephany Flores` body.
CASAREZ: A baseball bat, which corroborates what we heard, that injuries were all over her body and even a broken neck. We have a special guest tonight that has taken his strength after a wake, after a funeral, to come on our air because of the outpouring of affection for the Flores family in Peru from America.
Ricardo Flores, he is the brother of Stephany Flores, thank you so much for taking the time. We understand that your family knows the owner of the casino, and it is he who gave to your family the name Joran Van Der Sloot. Is that correct?
RICARDO FLORES, BROTHER OF STEPHANY FLORES: Yes, it is.
CASAREZ: And after that, when you took that name, did you recognize that name right away, or how did you associate Joran Van Der Sloot with Natalee Holloway?
FLORES: We went to our house and looked up his name and it come up right away.
CASAREZ: And what were the thoughts that your family had when they realized who the prime suspect was?
FLORES: The worst thing is going to happen.
CASAREZ: We can`t imagine the horror that you went through. Now, we know that the autopsy was two days ago. Have authorities told you at all when the autopsy report will be concluded, when what we call in this country, toxicology, forensic investigation, have they told you when they will have results?
FLORES: I don`t know the details of that because I didn`t hear about it. Maybe my father knows about it.
CASAREZ: Did you yourself go to the hotel at all?
FLORES: We went -- my father, my brother, Enrique, and I.
CASAREZ: And there`s something that I don`t want to ask you, but the American people want to know. Is it true that you are the one that identified your sister`s body?
FLORES: Yes, I have to do it.
CASAREZ: That must have been the hardest thing you`ll ever have to do. You know, your sister, we have learned, your sister was a third-year business student at the University of Lima. You must have been so proud of her.
FLORES: Of course, we are now proud of her because we think that she sacrificed her life to put this killer in jail.
CASAREZ: She sacrificed her life. Let`s go to a caller, Angie in Virginia. Angie, are you still there?
CALLER: Yes. Hi, Jean.
CASAREZ: Hi, Angie.
CALLER: I was wondering, since Joran has been arrested, do you think maybe now the Kalpoe brothers might come forward with information in Natalee`s disappearance?
CASAREZ: That`s a really good question. Let`s go out to the attorneys tonight. Dan Conaway, international law attorney from Atlanta, Georgia, Hugo Rodriguez, defense attorney and former FBI agent out of Miami.
Dan Conaway, what do you say? Could the Natalee Holloway investigation be helped because of the Flores, and just as Mr. Flores said, that Stephany Flores gave her life for the Natalee Holloway investigation?
DAN CONAWAY, INTERNATIONAL ATTORNEY, ATLANTA, GEORGIA: Absolutely, on several fronts. First front is that they`ve got charges in the U.S. and they can use that information. And they`ve got a combination between the U.S. charges and the Peruvian charges now of 85 total years. So, he`s not going anywhere.
And also, they can use the information -- the baseball bat, the forensic information and also the information, the federal investigation from the search in the United States and the charges in the United States to support a new charge and a new criminal investigation in Aruba against this man, and they should do it and they need to do it.
CASAREZ: To Hugo Rodriguez, defense attorney, former FBI agent. Just yesterday, a federal complaint filed in Birmingham, Alabama, stating that Joran Van Der Sloot willingly and knowingly caused someone in Birmingham, Alabama, to wire from a financial institution to the Netherlands $15,000.
The total would be $250,000. And he would then tell someone in Birmingham where the body of Natalee was. That was extortion, is saying the federal government. Now, here`s my question to you. There`s a federal complaint now. It`s going to go into the process. Can, at some point, the U.S. extradite Joran Van Der Sloot to this country?
HUGO RODRIGUEZ, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Joran Van Der Sloot`s going to spend the rest of his life in a Peruvian prison. I don`t think the extortion case will be relevant. But you should know that $15,000 which was part of an FBI sting, was sent to Van Der Sloot three weeks prior to him going to Peru.
It`s obvious that he had run out of money, and unfortunately, victimized this young girl. There`s certain other things that everyone needs to know. In Peru, it`s three judges. There is no -- it`s a preponderance standard. It is not beyond a reasonable doubt as we have in this country. And those three judges are career government employees. He`s in for a very rude awakening.
CASAREZ: Preponderance of the evidence, not reasonable doubt. Dan Conaway, international law attorney out of Atlanta, what else can you tell us about the Peruvian legal system?
CONAWAY: Well, we`ve got a situation that`s interesting, because the entire Peruvian criminal justice system was reformed in 2006, and it was reformed to make it more open. It was reformed to make it more adversarial and also to streamline the process so that it would be public, it would be on display and that it would eliminate the secrecy problems that it had previously to that.
So, they`ve got that in place. And this is going to be the trial of the century for Peru, absolutely. And now they`ve got an adversarial system in place that replaces the inquisitorial system that will allow the Peruvian public the chance to see this trial and the chance to have access to the information.
CASAREZ: But very quickly, if for some reason charges were dropped in Peru, can the U.S. act immediately so he stays behind bars and come to this country on an extradition procedure?
CONAWAY: Absolutely.
RODRIGUEZ: Yes.
CONAWAY: What they will do is they will move forward. They`ve got the grand jury. They`ve already done the search and on February 1st of 2010, there was a new agreement signed between the U.S. and the EU, and that`s going to help them do that. They`re going to be able to hold that indictment over his head like a baseball bat.
CASAREZ: International cooperation. Thank you. So, the race across America 2010 fund-raising for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The Georgia chain gang making the 3,000-mile bike ride from San Diego to Annapolis. It`s starting June 12th. Their goal is to raise $160,000 for research, education and patient services.
The so-called Chain Gang riding on behalf of their crew chief, Ruan Bruno and 7-year-old Brennan Simkins, bravely battling leukemia for two years. To donate, go to gachaingang.org. Let us win this fight against leukemia.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): She suffered blunt trauma to the head, breaking her neck, into her torso and back. Those are the conclusions of the autopsy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The parents of Stephany Flores held on to her favorite teddy bear as they said good-bye at her funeral.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This morning Interpol said Chile wants them out of the country. That`s where he was arrested yesterday.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is the prime suspect in the murder of a 21- year-old woman in Peru.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police say her body was found in a hotel room registered to Van Der Sloot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last night he was seen here. He entered the hotel accompanied by a woman, 21-year-old Stephany Flores. She was buried last night.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A guest and an employee at a hotel where her body was found says that they saw her and Van Der Sloot entering his room Sunday morning. Authorities say that her neck was broken.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But unlike the Natalee Holloway case, Stephany Flores` body was found.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Natalee Holloway`s uncle says that he`s sorry that Stephany Flores` family, the woman in Peru, is going through the same thing they went through. Jean notes this could have been avoided.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whether he dumped her in the ocean or sold her to someone on the beach. They`re both crimes and he should have been held accountable. And if he had been, this other young girl might still be alive.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A hotel videotape showed Joran Van Der Sloot and Stephany Flores going into his room where she was later found dead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: I`m Jean Casarez of the Legal Network "In Session" in for Nancy Grace tonight. In addition to everything that is happening in Peru - - and you are watching video of Joran Van Der Sloot as he is being transported. They had to put a bullet-proof vest on him today because Peruvians were out in mass to greet him as he came into their country.
But as that was happening in Peru, in this country, the U.S. federal government has filed a complaint in Birmingham, Alabama, against Joran Van Der Sloot, stating that he tried to extort money through wire fraud. Now, in addition to that, we are just learning right now that two raids have come down in the Netherlands at the request and coordinated by the American government, two raids on two homes.
It is believed that these are cooperatives, associates of Joran Van Der Sloot`s. Seized were computers, cell phones, all electronic equipment that could be found. So, countries coordinating with the United States in this complaint that was recently filed yesterday.
We want to go to Dr. Titus Duncan, MD, general surgery here in Atlanta at Atlanta Medical Center. I want to talk to you about the revelation that law enforcement is confirming tonight with our producers that it was a baseball bat that was found in the room that they say caused the death of Stephany Flores. We knew the injuries were extensive. We have heard that her neck was broken. Put that scene medically together for us.
DR. TITUS DUNCAN, GENERAL SURGERY, ATLANTA MEDICAL CENTER: Well, she could have all these injuries from a baseball bat, and it had to be pretty fierce injuries. I mean, they had to -- with a lot of force to the head and to the neck, you can surely break the neck, but it requires quite a bit of force. You break the neck, you stop breathing and you can die from that.
You can also have head injuries, which causes intracranial or brain bleeding. So, all these things could have caused her immediate death, or he could have broken her ribs, pierced her lungs and pierced her heart. All of these things can be pretty brutal, but it takes some pretty severe blows to cause this and make this amount of injuries. So, this guy was either very, very brutal, outrageous and just crazy.
CASAREZ: You say immediate death, but there was suffering involved, correct?
DUNCAN: Yes. There was a tremendous amount of suffering. She did not die immediately. If he hit her several times and several times within the face and several times within the torso, she suffered. She suffered in pain, she suffered in agony, and that was the tragedy of all this.
Because again, you can hit some several times and then wind up hitting them in the head and then they die, or you can hit them and they will just lay there in excruciating pain for several hours and die later on.
CASAREZ: Tonight with us we have two families. We have Linda Allison, who`s the aunt of Natalee Holloway, and we have Ricardo Flores, who`s the brother of Stephany Flores in Peru. Linda Allison, Ricardo Flores can hear you tonight. Do you have a message for the Flores family in Peru?
LINDA ALLISON: Our family`s just so sorry for what you guys are having to go through right now. I know it`s a very difficult time right now, and I know that justice will come. It may take a long time and you`ll have to have patience. And we just are praying for you and we have gotten messages from a lot of our friends and family that extend their prayers and their thoughts to you and your family.
CASAREZ: And tonight, "CNN Heroes."
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Before my mother`s experience, cleaners on the street were pretty much invisible to me. My mother went in the nursing home after a stroke. I didn`t want to leave my mother in a place where people were ignoring her. Here`s my mom. This was a month before she passed away.
I was shocked that our culture doesn`t have a place for very old people except in nursing homes. And I decided that I wanted to do something about that. My name is Irene Zola, and my organization is helping seniors age at home. Do you want to sit on the bench for a moment?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, OK.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So we help to connect seniors with people in the community and the volunteers provide any kind of informal care that is wanted by the senior. I brought you chicken noodle soup.
There is a growing population of elders, families are living far away from one another.
Hello. So this is one way that a community really makes a difference.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You are sweetie. Makes you feel enriched and she has a way about her. I`m glad somebody cares.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It definitely made me more aware and made me feel more connected to my own neighbors and neighborhood. Some people believe old age is a time when people stop learning but it`s not. Why not live life to the fullest?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CASAREZ: And now a look back at the stories making the headlines this week.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The manhunt is over for Joran Van Der Sloot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, Joran.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stephany Flores was found dead in a Lima hotel room registered in Van Der Sloot`s name.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was such a crime of passion.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The anger involved.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was a short window that he committed the crime.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We will be to shout that he is a killer and won`t be able to walk away like he did in Aruba.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is indeed the man they`re looking for that he has been arrested. He has been captured.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Authorities say they detained him today in Chile.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That is Joran Van Der Sloot who was just arrested.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is now in custody under arrest in Santiago.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 33-year-old Debra Jeter committed a horrific crime.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What`s your emergency?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just killed my children.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Excuse me?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just killed my children.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Joining us tonight is a very special guest, the husband, father of these two little girls.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was cut from one side of her neck all the way to the other. And her airway was cut and one of her main arteries were cut so they had to stitch those back together.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Breaking news, a former "Survivor" producer is now wanted for the murder of his wife.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Relatives say this wasn`t a normal family vacation.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: An arrest warrant has just been issued for Bruce Beresford-Redman in the death of his wife Monica.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With us right now, a very special guest, Carlos Burgos. This is Monica Beresford-Redman`s sister.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Really relieved now, you know, that things are - - the tide is changing for us, you know, because it was a lot of work and a lot of pain.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The mom is murdered. It`s such a brutal manner and basically although I try to put a euphemistically thrown down -- her half naked body thrown down a sewer in Mexico with all of the human waste.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police said Joran Van Der Sloot is the main suspect in the murder of this woman, Stephany Tatiana Flores Ramirez.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Twenty one year old victim reportedly discovered in a pool of her blood wrapped in a blanket.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Peru is not going to let go of him, oh, no. This is a whole other can of worms for Joran Van Der Sloot. He has killed a Peruvian girl in Peru. They`re not letting him go to get it on the wrist.
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CASAREZ: Tonight let us stop to remember Navy hospital man Zacharay Alday, 22 years old from Donaldson, Georgia, killed in Iraq. He awarded the purple heart. He took pride in giving medical help to the troops. He loved the outdoors and hunting and fishing, waterskiing. Spending time with family and friends.
He leaves behind his parents, Tommy and Donna, sister Mandy, grandparents W.H. and Patricia and daughter Carmen. Zachary Alday, an American hero. Thank you to all of our guests and to you for being at home with us tonight. See you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern. Until then, good night, everybody.
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