Suspect admits 2005 killing of Natalee Holloway in extortion case plea deal

Joran van der Sloot is not charged over Holloway's death in Aruba, but pleaded guilty to trying to extort money from her mother

The chief suspect in Natalee Holloway's 2005 disappearance in Aruba has admitted that he killed the 18-year-old and disposed of her remains, as part of a plea deal where he admitted attempting to extort money from Holloway's mother, a US judge said Wednesday.

Joran van der Sloot, 36, confessed to murdering Holloway and pleaded guilty to extortion and fraud, Judge Anna Manasco said. Van der Sloot had been extradited to Alabama for the hearing from Peru, where he is serving a 28-year sentence for murdering Stephany Flores, a 21-year-old Peruvian business student, in May 2010 in Lima.