Beth Holloway says she felt she had to lead the search for her 18-year-old daughter, Natalee, after she disappeared during a graduation trip to Aruba in 2005. A new three-part Netflix docuseries, Taken: Natalee Holloway, follows Beth’s efforts from the first day of the search through Joran van der Sloot’s 2023 confession to killing Natalee.

Beth arrived on the island hours after learning that Natalee had missed her flight home. She had heard from other young people on the trip that Natalee was last seen getting into a car with van der Sloot, who initially claimed to be visiting from the Netherlands. Beth recalled believing there was enough information to start looking for her daughter, but said she felt on her own after van der Sloot gave a statement to police and the investigation did not immediately progress.

The family and volunteers set up a tip line and followed up on reported sightings around the island. Beth also spoke regularly to the media, saying she wanted to keep pressure on Aruba. The search brought repeated false hopes, she recalled, as leads that seemed promising failed to find Natalee.

Van der Sloot first told police that Natalee had been drinking, went with him to a beach and was later helped into her hotel by security guards. Hotel security footage later showed that she had not been dropped off there. Van der Sloot and brothers Deepak and Satish Kalpoe were arrested in June 2005. The brothers denied involvement and were released, while van der Sloot repeatedly changed his account. Former Aruban Deputy Police Chief Gerold Dompig says in the series that investigators could not prove what had happened.

The three men were released from custody in September 2005. Beth returned to Alabama after spending much of the summer in Aruba, but continued seeking answers. In 2010, van der Sloot offered to disclose where Natalee’s remains were in exchange for $250,000. The FBI recorded the arrangement and established that his claim about the location was false.

Van der Sloot was later sentenced to 28 years in prison in Peru for the 2010 killing of Stephany Flores. In 2023, he was extradited to the United States to face attempted extortion and wire fraud charges connected to his offer to Beth. He pleaded guilty, and his agreement to begin serving a concurrent 20-year sentence for fraud included explaining what happened to Natalee.

Beth initially opposed a deal that could mean van der Sloot served less time than she believed he deserved, but ultimately chose to hear his account. She said his description of Natalee’s death was devastating, but that she believed he was telling the truth. For Beth, the confession ended the uncertainty that she described as the most torturous part of the case.

Sources: E! News.