New York – An appeals court has denied a request by Aruban prosecutors to arrest a Dutch college student in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway.
The prosecutors had appealed a decision earlier this month by an Aruban judge that Joran Van der Sloot could not be arrested based on statements he made in a secretly recorded video. The tape showed Van der Sloot saying he was with the Alabama teenager when she died in the Dutch Caribbean island and that he had a friend dump her body at sea.
The appeals court ruled that Van der Sloot's statements were inconsistent with other evidence and insufficient to hold him.
The 20-year-old Van der Sloot was detained previously in the case but was released for insufficient evidence.
Holloway, an 18-year-old from Mountain Brook was last seen in May 2005 leaving a bar with Van der Sloot and two Surinamese brothers on the final night of a high school graduation trip to the island.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)