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A U.S. judge on Tuesday granted a request to postpone Joran Van der Sloot’s extortion trial until the fall, allowing him more time to prepare his defense or consider a guilty plea.
Kevin Butler, Van der Sloot’s attorney, requested the continuance from the original trial date of July 31 in order to review evidence and conduct investigations to prepare his case.
Van der Sloot has long been a prime suspect in the 2005 disappearance of Natalee Holloway, a high school grad who was on vacation with her classmates in Aruba.
He now faces federal charges for attempting to extort money from Holloway’s mother by promising to disclose the location of her daughter’s remains.
The 35-year-old was extradited from Peru earlier this month to stand trial in Holloway’s home state of Alabama.
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U.S. Magistrate Gray Borden, who granted the extension, noted that it would run until Oct. 2, but added that the exact trial date would be decided later.
Holloway went missing while on a high school graduation trip with her classmates and was last seen leaving a bar with Van der Sloot, a student at an international school on the island.
Despite extensive efforts, her remains have never been located, and no one has been charged in connection with her disappearance.
According to U.S. prosecutors, Van der Sloot attempted to extort money from mom Beth Holloway in 2010, and was indicted by a grand jury that same year, initially pleading not guilty to the charges.
Earlier this month, Van der Sloot appeared in an Alabama courtroom for his arraignment on the federal charges while Holloway’s parents observed the proceedings.
It was his first appearance since being extradited from Peru, where he’s serving a 28-year prison sentence for the murder of a Peruvian woman in 2010 — five years to the day after Holloway went missing.
With News Wire Services
Evan Rosen
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