The Latest On The Natalee Holloway DNA Testing

Pictured are the four bone fragments currently being tested for a possible match to Natalee Holloway, the Alabama teen who made international headlines after disappearing on a class trip to Aruba in 2005. As Oxygen.com recently reported, at least one of the bone fragments discovered through an investigation chronicled on “The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway” came from a single human of Caucasian, European descent. In his latest assessment, Dr. Jason Kolowski, who is coordinating the DNA testing, said that at least one of the DNA samples appears to belong to someone other than Natalee. 

If one of [the samples] comes forward and comes through in the testing and shows to be her, then it’s Natalee and an unknown individual,” says Dr. Kolowski, noting the likelihood of this outcome is somewhat slim. Testing will be completed by October 6, and Oxygen.com will announce the conclusive results. 

The bone fragments were recently discovered in Aruba during an 18-month investigation conducted by Natalee's father, Dave Holloway, and his private investigator, TJ Ward. John Ludwick, a friend of longtime suspect Joran van der Sloot, claimed he was paid $1,500 in 2010 to dig up Natalee Holloway’s remains and have them cremated. In a disturbing interview with TJ Ward, John claimed that he and Joran pummeled the bones for hours and burned Natalee Holloway's skull in a cave before he took them to a morgue.

The bone fragments were recently discovered in Aruba during an 18-month investigation conducted by Natalee's father, Dave Holloway, and his private investigator, TJ Ward. John Ludwick, a friend of longtime suspect Joran van der Sloot, claimed he was paid $1,500 in 2010 to dig up Natalee Holloway’s remains and have them cremated. In a disturbing interview with TJ Ward, John claimed that he and Joran pummeled the bones for hours and burned Natalee Holloway's skull in a cave before he took them to a morgue.

Disappearance of Natalee Holloway Sneak Peek 105: Where Did You Take the Remains?

“The idea was to crush everything to the point where it wasn’t recognizable as her bones or skull or anything like that,” said John, explaining that it was illegal to bring human remains to a crematorium but not those of a pet. John said that Joran mixed in dog bones with Natalee’s remains. John then took them to a morgue and paid someone $200 cash to allow him to cremate what he claimed was his beloved pet. John also told TJ Ward that he and Joran paid a fisherman to borrow his boat and then spread the ashes at sea.

The bone fragments recently discovered contain only mitochondrial DNA. Unlike nuclear DNA, which comes from both parents, mitochondrial is only from the mother and takes more time to test. The forensic scientist who is coordinating the testing of the DNA explained to Oxygen.com that a reference sample has been collected from Beth Holloway, Natalee’s mother. “Beth’s would be exactly the same as Natalee’s or any of Beth’s other children,” explains Dr. Jason Kolowski. Final results of the testing should be completed by October 6, at the latest. If any of the bone fragments turn out to match Beth’s mitochondrial DNA, the 12-year search for Natalee’s remains will be over.

Natalee Holloway was last seen leaving a bar with Joran van der Sloot, who is a primary suspect in her disappearance. He has never been charged due to a lack of evidence. Van der Sloot is currently serving a 28-year prison sentence in Peru for the brutal murder of Stephany Flores, which he committed five years to the day after Natalee disappeared.