The insider

- Peter R. de Vries & the key figure -

Peter R. de Vries could only solve the mysterious disappearance of Natalee Holloway thanks to a unique undercover-action which was accomplished by the Dutch-Antillean businessman Patrick van der Eem. He was the one who seduced Joran van der Sloot to a confession, which was recorded perfectly by the hidden cameras of De Vries.

- A businessman as key figure -

Patrick van der Eem (34 years old) is born on Curaçao, but also knows the island Aruba very well. He considers the Antillean islands as the most beautiful place on earth. Nowadays he lives and works successfully in the Dutch city of Arnhem, which is the same city Joran van der Sloot moved to. Patrick van der Eem is the director of Pirtek Almelo (www.pirtek.com), a franchise company which maintains and repairs hydraulic equipment. He speaks five languages fluently (English, Dutch, Papiamento, Spanish and German.)

- The meeting -

Patrick met Joran by coincidence for the first time in a casino in the area of Arnhem. From the first minute he knew that the teenager was an addict: Joran is addicted to gambling and smoking weed. Within a short period of time he won the trust of Joran, who was looking for help and support. Patrick became his friend and confident.

- Patrick & Peter R. de Vries -

In reality Patrick wasn’t Jorans best friend at all. When the businessman had the feeling that he had won Jorans trust, he approached crime reporter Peter R. de Vries. In the Netherlands it is well-known that De Vries knows how to act in these kinds of situations. They agreed that Patrick would try to get even closer to Joran, so that he might start talking about the disappearance of Natalee Holloway. A possible confession of Joran was to be recorded clearly on tape and at the same time the police investigation should not be disturbed. Because Joran and Patrick spent a lot of time together in the car, DeVries and Van der Eem decided to get a new car for Patrick and prepared it with hidden cameras.

- Confession-on-tape -

In January 2008, after Joran has just been arrested for the second time on Aruba, Patrick and Joran make five car drives together. They drive crisscross through the Netherlands and their conversations are being taped by the hidden cameras. During the third drive Joran exposes how Natalee Holloway died in his arms and how he, with the help of a friend, made her disappear forever in the ocean. After the several car drives Joran tells Patrick that he is relieved that he could finally tell somebody.

Peter R. de Vries: “Patrick is an inexperienced layman, but based on his intuition he was able to get Jorans trust in order to make him talk. He produced a unique performance, was probable thanks to the fact that he was NOT a qualified investigator or a skilled journalist. Patrick was the right man in the right place. With our unanimous cooperation we succeeded in our mission.”

Patrick van der Eem: “I don’t consider what I have done as betrayal, on the contrary.  I did this for Aruba, that suffered enormously under the effects of the mysterious disappearance. De damage Joran inflicted to the island is huge. It goes without saying that I also did this for the parents of Natalee. They finally know what happened to their child.”