US

Natalee Holloway’s Remains May Have Been Found

(Photo: Reuters)

Amber Athey Podcast Columnist
Font Size:

Twelve years after the disappearance of Natalee Holloway, her father and a private investigator may have found her remains in Aruba.

Dave Holloway and T.J. Ward say they discovered the remains on the Caribbean Island after an 18-month investigation based on a tip from an informant named “Gabriel.” The men are awaiting a DNA test to confirm whether or not the remains are Natalee’s.

“When we determined these remains were human, I was shocked,” Holloway told Today’s Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie. “I know there’s a possibility this could be someone else, and I’m just trying to wait and see.”

“We have a person who states he was directly involved with Joran van der Sloot in disposing of Natalee’s remains,” Holloway said of the informant. “We’ve chased a lot of leads and this one is by far the most credible lead I’ve seen in the last 12 years.”

The 18-year-old from Alabama first went missing in 2005 when she was vacationing in Aruba with friends to celebrate her high school graduation. The prime suspect in Natalee’s disappearance is Dutch native Joran van der Sloot — he was the last person to be seen with Natalee when she was alive and is currently serving 28 years in prison for a different murder.

Holloway says the results of the DNA test will be known in a few weeks to a month and hopes that this will “finally be the end” of his family’s search for their daughter.

 Follow Amber on Twitter