In a shocking turn of events, Joran van der Sloot, the prime suspect in the 2005 disappearance of Alabama teen Natalee Holloway in Aruba, has finally confessed to her parents that he beat her to death. During a federal court hearing on Wednesday, van der Sloot pleaded guilty to charges of extortion and wire fraud related to an attempt to extort money from Holloway's mother in exchange for information about her daughter's death and the location of her remains.

The 36-year-old Dutch citizen, who has been the main suspect in Holloway's disappearance for almost two decades, expressed remorse and claimed to be “born-again” during the hearing. He apologized to the Holloway family and his own family, stating that he hoped his confession would bring some closure to everyone involved. Van der Sloot also revealed that he had "opened his heart" to Jesus Christ and that he was no longer the person he was back then.

Beth Holloway, Natalee's mother, confirmed in court that van der Sloot confessed to beating her daughter to death and revealed a horrifying detail about his actions after the murder. She stated that he went home and watched pornography after snuffing out Natalee's life for refusing his sexual advances. Beth Holloway expressed her shock and disbelief that she had unknowingly paid her daughter's killer money during the extortion plot.

Judge Anna Manasco, before sentencing van der Sloot to 240 months in prison for the extortion scheme, revealed that the Holloway family would not find Natalee's remains, but did not provide any further details. Van der Sloot was already serving a 28-year sentence in Peru for the 2010 murder of another woman when he was extradited to Alabama to face charges in the extortion case. The judge referred to his crimes as “heinous” and highlighted that he had brutally murdered two women who refused his sexual advances.

The confession and guilty plea of van der Sloot mark a significant development in the long-lasting true-crime saga of Natalee Holloway's disappearance. The 18-year-old teenager was last seen leaving a club in Aruba with van der Sloot and twin brothers Deepak and Satish Kalpoe during a high school graduation trip. The trio was arrested and released multiple times in 2005 and 2007, but no charges were filed due to a lack of evidence linking them to Holloway's disappearance.

In March 2010, van der Sloot reached out to Beth Holloway's attorney, claiming to have information about the location of Natalee's remains. He demanded a sum of $250,000 in exchange for revealing the burial site. However, he deceived the attorney about the location and admitted later that the information was worthless. This led to his indictment in Alabama on charges of extortion and wire fraud.

It would be years before van der Sloot could be extradited to the United States. In May 2010, he committed another murder, killing a young woman named Stephany Flores in Peru. He was arrested in Chile after fleeing Peru and eventually sentenced to a total of 36 years in prison for both murders. Once his federal case concludes in the United States, van der Sloot will return to Peru to serve the remainder of his sentence for the murder of Flores.

The plea deal that van der Sloot is expected to take in relation to the extortion charges includes revealing details about how Natalee Holloway died and what happened to her body. Beth Holloway's lawyer, John Q. Kelly, confirmed that the search for Natalee's remains is over, signifying that van der Sloot's confession may provide the answers her family has been seeking for almost two decades.

The tragic story of Natalee Holloway's disappearance has captivated the public's attention for years. Despite the lack of closure and the pain endured by her family, the confession and guilty plea of Joran van der Sloot offer a glimmer of hope that the truth about her fate may finally come to light.