The authorities on the island of Aruba say they have not yet been informed about underwater photos possibly showing the remains of Natalee Holloway. Aruban officials add, however, that they are willing to consider any new information in the case.

The pictures, taken in October 2009 by US holidaymaker Patti Muldowney who was diving off Aruba with her husband John, were widely shown in American media.

Mr and Mrs Muldowney are convinced that their photos show a human skeleton, which they think could well belong to US teenager Natalee Holloway who disappeared in 2005. They told WHDH-TV in Boston that they did not develop the photos until December 2009, and when they had made their discovery, contacted Natalee Holloway's father, who allowed them to go public with it.

The couple handed the photos to their local FBI office in Philadelphia, which is reportedly establishing contact with the nearest legal representative of the FBI in the Caribbean, in Bridgetown, Barbados. The FBI can only help if the Aruban authorities formally request their assistance. Earlier co-operation between Aruba's police and the FBI in the Holloway case was also arranged via Barbados.

The main suspect in the case, Dutchman Joran van der Sloot, has never been formally charged with Natalee Holloway's disappearance. Prosecutors failed to find sufficient evidence against him.

Location unknown
Aruban authorities emphasise that every new piece of information in the case will be scrutinised, and say that these photos, once they are in the hands of local police, will also be closely investigated. Police divers will probably search the underwater spot, whose exact location remains unknown.

Public Prosecutor Rob Pietersz told RNW that no official notification had been received, but that the authorities are willing to consider any indication they get. As soon as the photos are in the possession of the Aruban authorities they will be sent to the Netherlands Forensic Institute to be verified. Aruban investigators say they would like to talk to the Muldowneys, if only for a global indication of the spot where the pictures were taken. The US couple never got in touch with Aruba police, which is in charge of the case, rather than the FBI.

Drowned immigrants
Local sources on Aruba say that one should be careful when drawing conclusions from the pictures: they may show coral formations which only suggest the shape of a skeleton. And if they are indeed human remains, the sources say, bear in mind that several illegal immigrants trying to reach Aruba drowned in the ocean, never to be seen again.

Dilma Arends Geerman reporting for RNW

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