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http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20006616-504083.html

Joran van der Sloot Peru Murder? Natalee Holloway Prosecutor Shocked
Posted by Kevin Hayes

NEW YORK (CBS) Aruban prosecutor Peter Blanken, who has been part of the investigation into the disappearance of Natalee Holloway, has learned that Joran van der Sloot is now a suspect in a new murder, that of a 21-year-old woman whose body was found in a hotel room in Lima, Peru. The prosecutor told CBS News that the allegation was a remarkable development and says that he is personally shocked by it.

Early Wednesday morning, Stephany Flores Ramirez was found dead, Peruvian newspaper El Comercio reports, in a hotel room registered under van der Sloot’s name. According to police reports, Ramirez had been brutally stabbed and was found wrapped in a blanket in a pool of blood.

Chief of detectives Col. Miguel Canlla says that Stephany was murdered on Sunday, and the girl’s father, Ricardo Flores, says van der Sloot appears with his daughter in video taken at a Lima casino early Sunday.

Aruban Prosecutor Peter Blanken said that an Interpol international arrest warrant has been issued for van der Sloot, who may, according to some reports, be on the run from police. The Dutch Foreign Affairs Department in the Netherlands has notified their people in Chile to be aware that Joran may be in Chile.

Five years ago, in May 2005, Alabama high school student Natalee Holloway disappeared during a senior class trip to Aruba. She was last seen leaving a bar with Joran van der Sloot. Van der Sloot has been detained several times, but never charged.

According to Blanken, he is examining the new details but does not expect it to affect the Holloway case or provide new evidence. He says that they will be contacting the Peruvian authorities later today to see if they can offer assistance.

Joe Taco checks in.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/37470839/ns/world_news-americas/

*excerpt*

An attorney for Van der Sloot in New York City, Joe Tacopina, said he did not know his client’s whereabouts and has not been in touch with him since the Peru allegations emerged.

Tacopina cautioned against a rush to judgment.

“Joran van der Sloot has been falsely accused of murder once before. The fact is he wears a bull’s-eye on his back now and he is a quote-unquote usual suspect when it comes to allegations of foul play,” Tacopina said.

*excerpt*

(statement from Beth, Natalee’s Mom)

“What’s happening now is incredible,” she said. “At this moment we don’t have anything to do with it, but we are following the case with great interest and if Peruvian authorities would need us, we are here.”