Joran van der Sloot to Fight Extradition to the United States

Confessed murderer Joran van der Sloot told a Peruvian judge on Wednesday he would fight extradition to the United States.  Van der Sloot is currently serving a 28-year sentence in the notorious Castro Castro prison in Lima, Peru for the murder of college student Stephany Flores after the two met in a local casino.  Van der Sloot had been in attendance at the Latin American Poker Tour (LAPT), following the event throughout South America. 

Van der Sloot, a prime suspect in the unsolved 2005 disappearance of Natalee Holloway faces an indictment in the U.S. for allegedly accepting $25,000 in early 2010 in exchange for information leading to discovery of Holloway’s body. 

Should the 24-year-old Dutchman remain in Peru, he would be eligible for parole within 7 to 10 years.  Extradition to the U.S. is likely to result in van der Sloot serving his entire 28-year sentence.

"It's not good for us if Van der Sloot goes to the United States because everyone hates him there and the members of the jury will thus be biased," said his attorney, Maximo Altez. "We will defend ourselves with all the legal remedies possible."

If Peru's Supreme Court approves the extradition request it will then need to be approved by the country's council of ministers.

- Gilbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com