It was recently reported that Joran Van der Sloot, the Dutch citizen who was the prime suspect in the disappearance of American student Natalee Holloway in Aruba in 2005, confessed to the murder of 21-year-old Stephany Flores Ramirez in Lima, Peru. Ramirez was found murdered in Van der Sloot’s hotel room. The two met hours earlier playing poker at a casino. Ramirez was an avid poker player and Van der Sloot was allegedly traveling through South America entering poker tournaments.

Ramirez, the daughter of a Peruvian circus impresario, was found by hotel employees with a broken neck and bleeding from the nose. Though she was found half-clothed, there was no evidence sexual assault took place. During Van der Sloot’s police interrogation, he stated that the two got into a verbal and physical confrontation after Ramirez allegedly found incriminating information about Natalee Holloway’s disappearance on Van der Sloot’s laptop. Van der Sloot told police he was under the influence of marijuana at the time of the incident.

After the incident, Van der Sloot fled to Chile, where he was arrested and turned over to Peruvian authorities. Hotel employees found Ramirez’s body while checking on Van der Sloot’s room.

In the Peruvian justice system, sentences are lighter in cases where the suspect confesses. There is no death penalty or life sentence. Van der Sloot faces a maximum of 35 years in prison. Van der Sloot had access to a public defender, but it is not known if he had any legal counsel.

If you are charged with any crime, you should seek the assistance of an experienced criminal defense attorney. Our attorneys at Wallin & Klarich have over 30 years of experience of defending all types of criminal matters. We will look at the particular facts of your case to determine the best defense strategy that is available to you that will result in the best possible outcome.