According to two law enforcement sources familiar with the operation, US federal agents are in transit to Peru for the purpose of conducting temporary transfer proceedings for Joran van der Sloot.

CNN has learned that an FBI team responsible for foreign custody transfers departed on Wednesday, using a government aircraft headed for Lima.

Van der Sloot, who is the primary suspect in the 2005 disappearance of Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway, is involved in this process, CNN reported.

Unless unforeseen legal procedures arise, it is anticipated that van der Sloot will be transferred to US federal custody on Thursday in Lima, after which he will be transported to Alabama, as confirmed by one of the sources.

This development follows a series of legal complications regarding van der Sloot’s extradition. He is presently serving a 28-year prison sentence in Peru for the 2012 murder of Stephany Flores, a 21-year-old, in his hotel room in Lima. Van der Sloot is currently detained at the Ancón 1 prison in Peru.

On Monday, van der Sloot’s attorney argued against his transfer to the United States. However, the Lima superior court has issued an order for him to be handed over to FBI agents on Thursday, as reported by CNN.

In the United States, van der Sloot faces federal charges of extortion and wire fraud.

These charges stem from allegations that he attempted to extort money from Natalee Holloway’s mother in 2010 by providing false information about her daughter’s disappearance.

Written by staff