Natalee Case Discussion #800 2/11 - 2/18/09

[texasmom]

Oh - and I found another article of hers posted at RWV where she calls Mickey John a drug dealer.

She appears to be just a swell reporter. 

So what part of her article are you disputing Jen? That Dave is ready to do another search? That they have raised 5 million to do so? That they have a boat ready? That Tim Miller and John Silvetti are once again stepping up to the plate? Is this what you want to dispute by trying to discredit this reporter?

NO! You will never get through to me, because I know what the Family has told me, I trust the Family and I choose to support the Family, Tim Miller, John Silvetti and the FBI as they once again attempt to bring Natalee home. Isn't this what it is supposed to be about, bringing Natalee home?

So why not back the Family then?

You don't know more than the Family, as much as you say you do, you do not. I stand with the Family, I stand by their second search, I stand with Tim Miller and I stand with John Silvetti.

Lisa...I'm just wondering did You learn of this new possible search from the Family or from the Article that was posted yesterday? If You learned it from the Family Then Your feelings might possibly be seen in a better light IMO......TIA

You beat me to it Hotping!

No, the family has told her this.  That would be Dave himself or Beth.

Clearly states that so there can be no doubt that isa is their contact point in this.

I just wonder when this new search will begin and why no one other than this reporter and isa have been told about it.  Guess they don't need donations this time?

That was one interesting thing I found in the news reports from the departure of the Persistence.  One station (KATC) reports that the mission is being funded by Louis Schaefer, the other (KLFY) that it is being funded by donations.  And an address provided to send donations to, (in Kemah TX) that was not for Texas Equusearch.  This information was televised the day the Persistence left Louisiana.  

TM...Do You still have the address in Kemah that was not for TES? TIA

IIRC P. O. Box 948 Kemah, Tx

It is at the end of the KLFY video I posted over in the Ocean search thread.  I also have a snapshot, but can't access my photobucket right now.  I'll post it on my lunchbreak if anyone wants to see it.

[Keepthefaith]

TM
"IIRC P. O. Box 948 Kemah, Tx

It is at the end of the KLFY video I posted over in the Ocean search thread.  I also have a snapshot, but can't access my photobucket right now.  I'll post it on my lunchbreak if anyone wants to see it."


KEEPTHEFAITH

Absolutely.Be interesting to see where the donations where going if not to TES..

[jen3560]

IIRC P. O. Box 948 Kemah, Tx

It is at the end of the KLFY video I posted over in the Ocean search thread.  I also have a snapshot, but can't access my photobucket right now.  I'll post it on my lunchbreak if anyone wants to see it.

Thanks txmom

the following is the only address to send donations to TES at:

Texas EquuSearch
PO Box 395
Dickinson, Texas 77539

[texasmom]

IIRC P. O. Box 948 Kemah, Tx

It is at the end of the KLFY video I posted over in the Ocean search thread.  I also have a snapshot, but can't access my photobucket right now.  I'll post it on my lunchbreak if anyone wants to see it.

Thanks txmom

the following is the only address to send donations to TES at:

Texas EquuSearch
PO Box 395
Dickinson, Texas 77539

Thanks jen, that's the information I have also.   

[hotping]

Thanks TM for the Address......I'm trying to see if I can find any info on it.... 

[nonesuche]

I don't think ldstlou has ever spoken to Beth but I have been informed by family that she does email with Jug.

I do feel I have to post to ldstlou that few, if any, with corporate ventures or start-up's would be doing a search of any kind with their company product/tools for singularly a philanthropic effort, just very unlikely in this economy. So I would caution you only that believing Silvetti's motivation is limited only to finding Natalee, is naive. That isn't a statement that Silvetti is all bad either ldstlou, forgive me but you do need to mature your perspective a bit to be relevant in the real corporate world.

[Anna]

What is there wrong with another search if Dave wants that ?

Nothing of course! The opposite, that would be grEAt
If the family trust Silvetti, he has my blessings too.

Dave Holloway has a history of collaborating with those who possess an obvious Aruban agenda in his quest to find answers to the disappearance of his beloved daughter.

I do not doubt Dave's sincerity but ... I cannot comprehend his reasoning.  I cannot comprehend how working together with the enemy who has prevented justice from prevail since the getgo will produce a positive outcome.

Janet

And yet is was Dave who told us repeatedly that ALE could not be trusted, would make evidence disappear and ask how much money do you have among other things.

So now I have to wonder why he would suddenly approve of ALE being the sole custodians of what could or could not be his daughter's remains.

Doesn't make sense to me.

 

[hotping]

http://www.klfy.com/Global/story.asp?S=7429813



Local Teams Joins The Search For Natalee Holloway
 
 
 
 
 
 
The latest developments in the Natalie Holloway case find three men back behind bars, but still no Natalee. Local teams from Acadiana are now joining the search for the 18 year old that disappeared in May of 2005.

The name of this boat says it all. Persistence is what search teams are hoping will lead them to Natalee Holloway.

Project Manager Marc Broussard said, "We met the Holloway family and as parents ourselves we wanted to help out, give our all and give them the Cajun spirit to motivate them to go out there, to find this child and bring her home."

The one hundred and twenty five foot boat is usually used for off-shore mapping and navigation for oil companies. Now the boat will take on a different role. Once teams reach Aruba they'll scan the bottom of the ocean and map out any objects that seem out of place. What sensors pick up is all monitored in this survey room. Teams will then investigate the objects and send a robotic like device under water with cameras.

It will take the boat eight to ten days to reach Aruba. The search teams tell us if something's out there they plan to find it.  Natalee's father was aboard the boat before it set sail. We spoke with him about this trip.

Dave Holloway told us, "You try to get back to the normal way of doing things, but it stays on your mind and you stay focused on what can I do next to get closure in this. Hopefully this will be the way to do this."

The RV persistence is scheduled to depart from The Port of Iberia Tuesday evening. This search will be the first deep water search for Natalie. Teams from New Iberia, Lafayette, and Texas are all participating in the search.

The trip is funded through donations. If you'd like to support the search efforts you can send donations to:

Attn: Search for Natalee Holloway, P.O. Box 948, Kemah, Texas 77565

Grace White

[Anna]

I don't think anybody has a problem with there being another search.  We are just wondering why we only hear about this from a foreign press. 

Also, I don't think any have a problem with duel purpose searches if that is understood beforehand.  AND the results not handed over exclusively to the Aruban ALE given their history.

[wingnut]

What is there wrong with another search if Dave wants that ?

Nothing of course! The opposite, that would be grEAt
If the family trust Silvetti, he has my blessings too.

Dave Holloway has a history of collaborating with those who possess an obvious Aruban agenda in his quest to find answers to the disappearance of his beloved daughter.

I do not doubt Dave's sincerity but ... I cannot comprehend his reasoning.  I cannot comprehend how working together with the enemy who has prevented justice from prevail since the getgo will produce a positive outcome.

Janet

And yet is was Dave who told us repeatedly that ALE could not be trusted, would make evidence disappear and ask how much money do you have among other things.

So now I have to wonder why he would suddenly approve of ALE being the sole custodians of what could or could not be his daughter's remains.

Doesn't make sense to me.

 

Hi Anna.  I know you will get this the first time, and without me speaking slowly, but the FBI said that they were human remains!  How else could that conversation have gone?

FBI: "Hello Kyle - nice day, isn't it?"

KYLE:  "OMG - they're human remains???  Excuse me - I need to go blog."

[johan555]

I don't think anybody has a problem with there being another search.  We are just wondering why we only hear about this from a foreign press. 

Also, I don't think any have a problem with duel purpose searches if that is understood beforehand.  AND the results not handed over exclusively to the Aruban ALE given their history.

Maybe Mos has connections with the Dutch press

[Anna]

And I need to hear it from this family that someone is a spokesperson for them and their interest.

Until I hear that, I don't think anyone has the right to be assuming to do such a thing.  I was not aware they had a Press Secretary or designated person who represents them in forums or the media.  They usually do that themselves and quite well.

[Anna]

What is there wrong with another search if Dave wants that ?

Nothing of course! The opposite, that would be grEAt
If the family trust Silvetti, he has my blessings too.

Dave Holloway has a history of collaborating with those who possess an obvious Aruban agenda in his quest to find answers to the disappearance of his beloved daughter.

I do not doubt Dave's sincerity but ... I cannot comprehend his reasoning.  I cannot comprehend how working together with the enemy who has prevented justice from prevail since the getgo will produce a positive outcome.

Janet

And yet is was Dave who told us repeatedly that ALE could not be trusted, would make evidence disappear and ask how much money do you have among other things.

So now I have to wonder why he would suddenly approve of ALE being the sole custodians of what could or could not be his daughter's remains.

Doesn't make sense to me.

 

Hi Anna.  I know you will get this the first time, and without me speaking slowly, but the FBI said that they were human remains!  How else could that conversation have gone?

FBI: "Hello Kyle - nice day, isn't it?"

KYLE:  "OMG - they're human remains???  Excuse me - I need to go blog."

 



Oh, I get it.  Just like to make sure some understand our concerns.

I try to present it in a different way so that perhaps it will penetrate the wall of density.

   Never does, however.

[jen3560]

IIRC P. O. Box 948 Kemah, Tx

It is at the end of the KLFY video I posted over in the Ocean search thread.  I also have a snapshot, but can't access my photobucket right now.  I'll post it on my lunchbreak if anyone wants to see it.

Thanks txmom

the following is the only address to send donations to TES at:

Texas EquuSearch
PO Box 395
Dickinson, Texas 77539

Thanks jen, that's the information I have also.   

Hmmmm

Search crew continues to hold out hope

Sometimes, it is just time to ask for help. Those of us who have devoted the past "almost" three years to finding and returning Natalee Holloway to American soil have reached that time. We need you. We need your help, your hope, your prayers... and yes... we need you to make a donation to allow us to finish the search and bring Natalee home.

Natalee Holloway, a then-recent American High School graduate, traveled to Aruba to celebrate what should have been a wonderful milestone on her way to a fulfilling education and eventual career in medicine. The night before she should have returned home, she instead, disappeared off the face of the earth. Natalee was last seen with an island resident named Joran Van der Sloot who said he didn't know what happened to her. He has since made the horrific admission that he dumped Natalee's seemingly-lifeless body into the cold ocean depths offshore from the beach where he'd taken her.

Kemah businessman, Louis Schafer, has personally spent in excess of a million dollars over the last four months funding a sophisticated, deep sea survey boat, named the Persistence. This aptly named ship, and her wonderful crew, have surveyed the entire 50-square miles area off Aruba. Schafer says, "We have identified at least 60 of the targets. We have about 150 more targets to inspect." Any one of those remaining 150 "targets" could be the remains of our missing American teenager. He went on to say, "We have completely mapped the ocean floor, we know every object that's there, we know every object that could be a container holding her in the sea."

Unfortunately, right now... with the recovery of Natalee within our grasp, the money has run out.

With just 150 objects remaining to be inspected, we are at the brink of finding Natalee or... incredible as it sounds to our hearts... abandoning the effort, coming home empty-handed... and never knowing, never knowing... did we have her right there amongst those targets. Tragically too... not finding Natalee and whatever evidence may be submerged with her... will almost certainly allow the perpetrator of this terrible crime to forever escape the justice deserved.

Texas Equusearch is the non-profit organization. Words can't express how desperately we hope they will hear from you. They can be contacted at: 281-309-9500 (www.texasequusearch.org)

We need you. Can you help?

Angela
Texas

http://www.meridianstar.com/opinion/local_story_062005533.html
----------------

Holloway Searchers Need Help

Thursday, February 28, 2008 | 8:21 PM
By Cynthia Cisneros

KEMAH, TX (KTRK) -- It's been almost three years since Natalee Holloway disappeared in Aruba on a class trip.

But searchers have not given up hope.

A Kemah businessman has been on the front lines of the search for Natalee, spending over a million dollars of his own money. Over the past four months, he's paid for an underwater search.

The morning we were there, Louis Schafer was signing a wire transfer for $250,000. The money used to operate a sophisticated, deep sea survey boat, named the Persistence.

"I've dedicated a million dollars, I've gone way above that," said Louis Schafer of Underwater Expeditions. "I feel like it's time to ask for help from the American people that want to see this case solved."

The Persistence has been used every day since November to survey the ocean floor near Aruba. It uses remote operated vehicles, called ROVs, to sweep the ocean depths. What they've been able to accomplish is astounding.

"By Friday, we will have surveyed the entire 50-square mile off Aruba," Schafer said. "We have identified at least 60 of the targets. we have about 150 more targets to inspect."

Natalee Holloway traveled to Aruba two years ago to celebrate her high school graduation and disappeared. Natalee was last seen with Joran Van der Sloot who says he does not know what happened to her.

Schafer made a fortune in the deep sea diving business for oil rig removal and installation. He had access to unique technology and a team of experts that could find just about anything.

"So we have completely mapped the ocean floor, we know every object that's there, we know every object that could be a container holding her in the sea," he said.

A relentless search Schafer and his team say will stop, if they don't get more funding.

"And we all feel, I'm speaking from everybody on the team, that she's in one of the targets we have not looked at yet," Tim Trahan of Underwater Expeditions said. "We can't stop. I go to sleep at night thinking we've located it, we just need to get to it."
-------------------

What happened during Natalee Holloway's final hours?

Joran van der Sloot admits he was with the Alabama teen the night he says she died. The controversial remarks come in a new undercover Dutch documentary.

Dave Holloway told me he believes Van der Sloot's video taped conversation that Natalee will never be found only adds to the determination of Equusearch and Holloway to find Natalee. Equusearch founder, Tim Miller, has said for years Holloway's body is in the ocean. A conclusion also held by Holloway's' father.

It's a phone call he makes almost daily. Tim Miller has stayed in constant contact with Natalee Holloway's father. Dave Holloway told me he remains skeptical of Joran van der Sloot.

"I guess what I'm struggling with right now is what he said and his action after it happened," Dave Holloway told me. "That's the real troubling question of his character of doing this. How can a person stoop that low is beyond me? Words cannot describe it."

Van der Sloot admitted in a televised undercover Dutch documentary, he lied when he said he knew nothing of what happened to Natalee Holloway. Van der Sloot says Holloway was drunk and doesn't know if she was dead or alive when he agreed with a friend to dump her body into the sea.

The admittance provides validation for Tim Miller who always thought Holloway was thrown overboard. Miller has been involved in the search for Natalee for over two years. Recently, he's chronicled events on a blog (http://www.nholloway.blogspot.com).

Now with new equipment capable of diving a thousand feet, Miller is confident of a recovery.

"We knew this going over there," Miller said. "If there is something the size of a quarter at the bottom of the sea, we will find it with this equipment. We're far from quitting." The search boat is being partly funded by a Kemah businessman. Miller says he plans to go back to Aruba in a few days.

Lawyers for Van de Sloot say he was not responsible for Holloway's death and was lying in those conversations.

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=5935135

[Tamikosmom]

Dave Holloway has a history of collaborating with those who possess an obvious Aruban agenda in his quest to find answers to the disappearance of his beloved daughter.

I do not doubt Dave's sincerity but ... I cannot comprehend his reasoning.  I cannot comprehend how working together with the enemy who has prevented justice from prevail since the getgo will produce a positive outcome.

Janet

LOGIC DICTATES..You must've won your yahtzee games!

Not by a long shot.  I came fifth out of six players and ... I hate losing.

 

However ... the delicious banana loaf that just had just come from my neighbour's oven prior to the games ... made up for the losing part of the evening.

Janet

[Anna]

I don't think anybody has a problem with there being another search.  We are just wondering why we only hear about this from a foreign press. 

Also, I don't think any have a problem with duel purpose searches if that is understood beforehand.  AND the results not handed over exclusively to the Aruban ALE given their history.

Maybe Mos has connections with the Dutch press

You think Mos told this reporter that Dave Holloway was bringing another boat to do another underwater search?

Also wonder if the pond has filled again with water.  Maybe that's what they were waiting for.

 

[Keepthefaith]

IIRC P. O. Box 948 Kemah, Tx

It is at the end of the KLFY video I posted over in the Ocean search thread.  I also have a snapshot, but can't access my photobucket right now.  I'll post it on my lunchbreak if anyone wants to see it.

Thanks txmom

the following is the only address to send donations to TES at:

Texas EquuSearch
PO Box 395
Dickinson, Texas 77539

Thanks jen, that's the information I have also.   

Hmmmm

Search crew continues to hold out hope

Sometimes, it is just time to ask for help. Those of us who have devoted the past "almost" three years to finding and returning Natalee Holloway to American soil have reached that time. We need you. We need your help, your hope, your prayers... and yes... we need you to make a donation to allow us to finish the search and bring Natalee home.

Natalee Holloway, a then-recent American High School graduate, traveled to Aruba to celebrate what should have been a wonderful milestone on her way to a fulfilling education and eventual career in medicine. The night before she should have returned home, she instead, disappeared off the face of the earth. Natalee was last seen with an island resident named Joran Van der Sloot who said he didn't know what happened to her. He has since made the horrific admission that he dumped Natalee's seemingly-lifeless body into the cold ocean depths offshore from the beach where he'd taken her.

Kemah businessman, Louis Schafer, has personally spent in excess of a million dollars over the last four months funding a sophisticated, deep sea survey boat, named the Persistence. This aptly named ship, and her wonderful crew, have surveyed the entire 50-square miles area off Aruba. Schafer says, "We have identified at least 60 of the targets. We have about 150 more targets to inspect." Any one of those remaining 150 "targets" could be the remains of our missing American teenager. He went on to say, "We have completely mapped the ocean floor, we know every object that's there, we know every object that could be a container holding her in the sea."

Unfortunately, right now... with the recovery of Natalee within our grasp, the money has run out.

With just 150 objects remaining to be inspected, we are at the brink of finding Natalee or... incredible as it sounds to our hearts... abandoning the effort, coming home empty-handed... and never knowing, never knowing... did we have her right there amongst those targets. Tragically too... not finding Natalee and whatever evidence may be submerged with her... will almost certainly allow the perpetrator of this terrible crime to forever escape the justice deserved.

Texas Equusearch is the non-profit organization. Words can't express how desperately we hope they will hear from you. They can be contacted at: 281-309-9500 (www.texasequusearch.org)

We need you. Can you help?

Angela
Texas

http://www.meridianstar.com/opinion/local_story_062005533.html
----------------

Holloway Searchers Need Help

Thursday, February 28, 2008 | 8:21 PM
By Cynthia Cisneros

KEMAH, TX (KTRK) -- It's been almost three years since Natalee Holloway disappeared in Aruba on a class trip.

But searchers have not given up hope.

A Kemah businessman has been on the front lines of the search for Natalee, spending over a million dollars of his own money. Over the past four months, he's paid for an underwater search.

The morning we were there, Louis Schafer was signing a wire transfer for $250,000. The money used to operate a sophisticated, deep sea survey boat, named the Persistence.

"I've dedicated a million dollars, I've gone way above that," said Louis Schafer of Underwater Expeditions. "I feel like it's time to ask for help from the American people that want to see this case solved."

The Persistence has been used every day since November to survey the ocean floor near Aruba. It uses remote operated vehicles, called ROVs, to sweep the ocean depths. What they've been able to accomplish is astounding.

"By Friday, we will have surveyed the entire 50-square mile off Aruba," Schafer said. "We have identified at least 60 of the targets. we have about 150 more targets to inspect."

Natalee Holloway traveled to Aruba two years ago to celebrate her high school graduation and disappeared. Natalee was last seen with Joran Van der Sloot who says he does not know what happened to her.

Schafer made a fortune in the deep sea diving business for oil rig removal and installation. He had access to unique technology and a team of experts that could find just about anything.

"So we have completely mapped the ocean floor, we know every object that's there, we know every object that could be a container holding her in the sea," he said.

A relentless search Schafer and his team say will stop, if they don't get more funding.

"And we all feel, I'm speaking from everybody on the team, that she's in one of the targets we have not looked at yet," Tim Trahan of Underwater Expeditions said. "We can't stop. I go to sleep at night thinking we've located it, we just need to get to it."
-------------------

What happened during Natalee Holloway's final hours?

Joran van der Sloot admits he was with the Alabama teen the night he says she died. The controversial remarks come in a new undercover Dutch documentary.

Dave Holloway told me he believes Van der Sloot's video taped conversation that Natalee will never be found only adds to the determination of Equusearch and Holloway to find Natalee. Equusearch founder, Tim Miller, has said for years Holloway's body is in the ocean. A conclusion also held by Holloway's' father.

It's a phone call he makes almost daily. Tim Miller has stayed in constant contact with Natalee Holloway's father. Dave Holloway told me he remains skeptical of Joran van der Sloot.

"I guess what I'm struggling with right now is what he said and his action after it happened," Dave Holloway told me. "That's the real troubling question of his character of doing this. How can a person stoop that low is beyond me? Words cannot describe it."

Van der Sloot admitted in a televised undercover Dutch documentary, he lied when he said he knew nothing of what happened to Natalee Holloway. Van der Sloot says Holloway was drunk and doesn't know if she was dead or alive when he agreed with a friend to dump her body into the sea.

The admittance provides validation for Tim Miller who always thought Holloway was thrown overboard. Miller has been involved in the search for Natalee for over two years. Recently, he's chronicled events on a blog (http://www.nholloway.blogspot.com).

Now with new equipment capable of diving a thousand feet, Miller is confident of a recovery.

"We knew this going over there," Miller said. "If there is something the size of a quarter at the bottom of the sea, we will find it with this equipment. We're far from quitting." The search boat is being partly funded by a Kemah businessman. Miller says he plans to go back to Aruba in a few days.

Lawyers for Van de Sloot say he was not responsible for Holloway's death and was lying in those conversations.

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=5935135

VERY INTERESTING..FOLLOW THE MONEY...

[Keepthefaith]

I don't think anybody has a problem with there being another search.  We are just wondering why we only hear about this from a foreign press. 

Also, I don't think any have a problem with duel purpose searches if that is understood beforehand.  AND the results not handed over exclusively to the Aruban ALE given their history.

Maybe Mos has connections with the Dutch press

You think Mos told this reporter that Dave Holloway was bringing another boat to do another underwater search?

Also wonder if the pond has filled again with water.  Maybe that's what they were waiting for.

 

But don't forget Anna.Mos told the reporter they were gonna do a search but he won't let them...Wow.Now that's some Logic..

[wingnut]

IIRC P. O. Box 948 Kemah, Tx

It is at the end of the KLFY video I posted over in the Ocean search thread.  I also have a snapshot, but can't access my photobucket right now.  I'll post it on my lunchbreak if anyone wants to see it.

Thanks txmom

the following is the only address to send donations to TES at:

Texas EquuSearch
PO Box 395
Dickinson, Texas 77539

Thanks jen, that's the information I have also.   

Hmmmm

Search crew continues to hold out hope

Sometimes, it is just time to ask for help. Those of us who have devoted the past "almost" three years to finding and returning Natalee Holloway to American soil have reached that time. We need you. We need your help, your hope, your prayers... and yes... we need you to make a donation to allow us to finish the search and bring Natalee home.

Natalee Holloway, a then-recent American High School graduate, traveled to Aruba to celebrate what should have been a wonderful milestone on her way to a fulfilling education and eventual career in medicine. The night before she should have returned home, she instead, disappeared off the face of the earth. Natalee was last seen with an island resident named Joran Van der Sloot who said he didn't know what happened to her. He has since made the horrific admission that he dumped Natalee's seemingly-lifeless body into the cold ocean depths offshore from the beach where he'd taken her.

Kemah businessman, Louis Schafer, has personally spent in excess of a million dollars over the last four months funding a sophisticated, deep sea survey boat, named the Persistence. This aptly named ship, and her wonderful crew, have surveyed the entire 50-square miles area off Aruba. Schafer says, "We have identified at least 60 of the targets. We have about 150 more targets to inspect." Any one of those remaining 150 "targets" could be the remains of our missing American teenager. He went on to say, "We have completely mapped the ocean floor, we know every object that's there, we know every object that could be a container holding her in the sea."

Unfortunately, right now... with the recovery of Natalee within our grasp, the money has run out.

With just 150 objects remaining to be inspected, we are at the brink of finding Natalee or... incredible as it sounds to our hearts... abandoning the effort, coming home empty-handed... and never knowing, never knowing... did we have her right there amongst those targets. Tragically too... not finding Natalee and whatever evidence may be submerged with her... will almost certainly allow the perpetrator of this terrible crime to forever escape the justice deserved.

Texas Equusearch is the non-profit organization. Words can't express how desperately we hope they will hear from you. They can be contacted at: 281-309-9500 (www.texasequusearch.org)

We need you. Can you help?

Angela
Texas

http://www.meridianstar.com/opinion/local_story_062005533.html
----------------

Holloway Searchers Need Help

Thursday, February 28, 2008 | 8:21 PM
By Cynthia Cisneros

KEMAH, TX (KTRK) -- It's been almost three years since Natalee Holloway disappeared in Aruba on a class trip.

But searchers have not given up hope.

A Kemah businessman has been on the front lines of the search for Natalee, spending over a million dollars of his own money. Over the past four months, he's paid for an underwater search.

The morning we were there, Louis Schafer was signing a wire transfer for $250,000. The money used to operate a sophisticated, deep sea survey boat, named the Persistence.

"I've dedicated a million dollars, I've gone way above that," said Louis Schafer of Underwater Expeditions. "I feel like it's time to ask for help from the American people that want to see this case solved."

The Persistence has been used every day since November to survey the ocean floor near Aruba. It uses remote operated vehicles, called ROVs, to sweep the ocean depths. What they've been able to accomplish is astounding.

"By Friday, we will have surveyed the entire 50-square mile off Aruba," Schafer said. "We have identified at least 60 of the targets. we have about 150 more targets to inspect."

Natalee Holloway traveled to Aruba two years ago to celebrate her high school graduation and disappeared. Natalee was last seen with Joran Van der Sloot who says he does not know what happened to her.

Schafer made a fortune in the deep sea diving business for oil rig removal and installation. He had access to unique technology and a team of experts that could find just about anything.

"So we have completely mapped the ocean floor, we know every object that's there, we know every object that could be a container holding her in the sea," he said.

A relentless search Schafer and his team say will stop, if they don't get more funding.

"And we all feel, I'm speaking from everybody on the team, that she's in one of the targets we have not looked at yet," Tim Trahan of Underwater Expeditions said. "We can't stop. I go to sleep at night thinking we've located it, we just need to get to it."
-------------------

What happened during Natalee Holloway's final hours?

Joran van der Sloot admits he was with the Alabama teen the night he says she died. The controversial remarks come in a new undercover Dutch documentary.

Dave Holloway told me he believes Van der Sloot's video taped conversation that Natalee will never be found only adds to the determination of Equusearch and Holloway to find Natalee. Equusearch founder, Tim Miller, has said for years Holloway's body is in the ocean. A conclusion also held by Holloway's' father.

It's a phone call he makes almost daily. Tim Miller has stayed in constant contact with Natalee Holloway's father. Dave Holloway told me he remains skeptical of Joran van der Sloot.

"I guess what I'm struggling with right now is what he said and his action after it happened," Dave Holloway told me. "That's the real troubling question of his character of doing this. How can a person stoop that low is beyond me? Words cannot describe it."

Van der Sloot admitted in a televised undercover Dutch documentary, he lied when he said he knew nothing of what happened to Natalee Holloway. Van der Sloot says Holloway was drunk and doesn't know if she was dead or alive when he agreed with a friend to dump her body into the sea.

The admittance provides validation for Tim Miller who always thought Holloway was thrown overboard. Miller has been involved in the search for Natalee for over two years. Recently, he's chronicled events on a blog (http://www.nholloway.blogspot.com).

Now with new equipment capable of diving a thousand feet, Miller is confident of a recovery.

"We knew this going over there," Miller said. "If there is something the size of a quarter at the bottom of the sea, we will find it with this equipment. We're far from quitting." The search boat is being partly funded by a Kemah businessman. Miller says he plans to go back to Aruba in a few days.

Lawyers for Van de Sloot say he was not responsible for Holloway's death and was lying in those conversations.

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=5935135

YES - I thought I remembered a KEMAH connection!  Thanks, Jen. 

[Anna]

I don't think anybody has a problem with there being another search.  We are just wondering why we only hear about this from a foreign press. 

Also, I don't think any have a problem with duel purpose searches if that is understood beforehand.  AND the results not handed over exclusively to the Aruban ALE given their history.

Maybe Mos has connections with the Dutch press

I thought Jossy knew all about the pond search, etc. so I have to wonder why he hasn't reported on this as well.