Poker player, Joran van der Sloot, was captured and arrested in Peru June 3, 2010 for the brutal murder of a Peruvian woman, Stephany Flores Ramirez. The 22-year-old, Dutch national, van der Sloot is globally known for being twice arrested in connection with the May 2005 disappearance of US native Natalee Holloway in Aruba. Strangely enough, the murder of Stephany Flores Ramirez occurred exactly five years to the day after Natalee Holloway’s disappearance, whose body has never been found and whose case remains unsolved.
Stephany Flores Ramirez Photo Image
Van der Sloot was in South America taking part in the PokerStars Latin American Poker Tour (LAPT) where he met Stephany Flores. According to authorities, van der Sloot met Flores a few days prior to the actual murder. She was an avid poker player, who had some success. Most recently, according to the police, she won about $10,000 in a poker game on May 24th. In addition, there are other records of her winning lesser amounts of money recently. Authorities believe van der Sloot had been watching her. Having arrived in Peru sometime around May 15th, he could have been observing Flores for at least a week or so prior and watched her win on more than a few occasions. Van der Sloot, avid poker player he was, was not a big winner. As a result, authorities believed van der Sloot befriended Flores due to her recent success in an effort to, perhaps, rob her. One theory suggests, after the two met, Joran turned on his charm, they started playing poker together and Joran was helping Stephany in the game. He ended up losing some money, she won some money so they went back to the hotel room to split the cash.
Van der sloot has confessed to the murder of Flores stating he reacted furiously when he found Flores using his laptop without his permission and she discovered his association to Natalee Holloway case. This confession came after he initially lied to police regarding his involvement in the act.
Joran van der Sloot Mug Shot
Regardless of how it came to be, the ending remains the same, 21-year-old Stephany Flores Ramirez found murdered. Face down on the hotel room floor, with abrasions on her face and body and signs of trauma. Joran van der Sloot charged with murder in Peru and a world wondering how this could happen again??? Some suggest Aruban authorities are to blame. If van der Sloot had been incarcerated in the 2005 Natalee Holloway case, Stephany Flores may still be alive. If van der Sloot’s father wasn’t a prominent Dutch judge with major influence to hinder or slow down the Aruban authorities’ investigation against his son in the Holloway case, Stephany Flores may still be alive. Van der sloot also made headlines in 2008 when it was revealed that he was involved in selling Thai women into prostitution pocketing $13,000 per woman. If authorities would have looked a little further into this, perhaps he would have been taken off the streets then and Stephany Flores may still be alive.
Now, in addition to Holloway and Flores, police in Columbia are investigating whether van der Sloot was involved in the disappearance of two young Columbian girls in Bogota. The two girls were allegedly seen in van der Sloot’s company, per eye witnesses, while he was visiting various casinos in the Columbian capital. Their disappearance allegedly occurred during the week he was staying in Bogota. The police spokesman stresses that there is only unsubstantiated evidence to implicate van der Sloot at this time and they will continue to investigate further.
At least, for now, van der Sloot is locked up in Peru. Let’s hope with his influential, Dutch judge father now deceased (Paul van der Sloot died in February 2010 at the age of 57), the Peruvian authorities will be able to do what the Aruban authorities couldn’t….get this monster off the streets so he is unable to hurt anyone else.