Gerold Dompig focusing his attention to the US in the investigation of Natalee Holloway

Police Commissioner Gerold Dompig is now head of the Investigating Team in the Natalee Holloway case has made some rather peculiar statements lately regarding the focus of his attention. Dompig has made public demands on wanting to question the Mountain Brook teens that were on vacation in Aruba when Natalee Holloway went missing and to question Beth Twitty who he claims has been uncooperative. In an A.M. Digital article Gerold Dompig stated the following:

Another issue is that so far the investigation has been focused in Aruba. Dompig said that now he and the team have redirected the focus to also include the US, because the group of students came from the US to party in Aruba and have a good time and it cannot be that they do not know anything about what happened.

For the police commissioner the information that the investigating team received from the FBI does not represent much. Therefore Dompig will make the same appeal on the Alabama teens as he did in Aruba: to call 011 297 587 0009 ext 101 to give any information that they may have.

Dompig has also made similar comments during recent talk shows as well. One can only hope that the Aruban investigators are actually contacting the Mountain Brook families directly and privately as well to answer any such questions and not just using talk shows. Dompig also made a similar comment in Diario; COMISARIO DOMPIGA TA BAY PIDI OMPAÃ’ERONAN DI NATALEE HOLLOWAY, PA KIBRA NAN SIKENCIO (Commissioner Dompig will ask for Natalee Holloway’s classmates to break their silence), where he Dompig asked the Mountain Brook teens to come forward and break their silence.

According to the commissioner, they were focusing the investigation very much on Aruba only, while now along with the team, Dompig is focusing on America as well.

The commissioner explains that one cannot forget that this was a group which drank together and had a good time, but it is not possible that nobody knows anything.

Dompig explains that the classmates’ declarations which they got from the FBI do not give sufficient information.

Although it is important to get statements and accounts from all involved including those that were with Natalee Holloway during her vacation to Aruba one wonders why now after five months. Why was this not done initially? If there were gaps in time or missing information why were there not follow up questions in the period between now and the point in which Natalee went missing? Who waits five months to get answers? I guess the same can be said as to why after five months no search has ever been made of the primary suspects home?

Aruba deals with a perception and a PR nightmare and it appears as though it may get worse. Have any of the parents of the Mountain Brook teens on the trip actually been contacted? According to one source the answer is no. Sure the Mountain Brook teens should tell authorities everything they know and be truthful no matter what they know; however, the fact that Aruban authorities have waited five months to take the investigation seriously is a shame. If all information was gained in the first 48 hours of this investigation and searches properly made we most likely would still not be searching for answers in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway.

To make matters even worse Dompig has made the following statements regarding Beth Twitty and her supposed lack of cooperation. This coming from an Aruban investigation that has never kept either Beth Twitty or Dave Holloway in the informational loop. The three prime suspects in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway are all out of jail, able to roam freely and have no restrictions on them yet somehow the attention is focused on Beth Twitty? Even Paul Van der Sloot is suing to have his name be cleared as a suspect.

This is also valid for the chaperone’s and for Beth Twitty, Natalee’s mother.

This mother can tell us about her last contact with her daughter. Unfortunately she continues to bash Aruba out there, and does not want to return to help with the investigation. On the other hand the investigating team has good contacts with the father, Dave Holloway, who is helping with the investigation.

Beth Twitty keeps in contact with Commissioner Dompig through her lawyer in Aruba and sometimes by means of one of the talk shows in the US. Dompig however said that he will no more appear on any talk show with the mother, because Beth Twitty has been invited to come to Aruba to make declarations again, but she is not cooperating.

One can only hope that Dompig is being sincere in his questioning of all parties in his efforts to start this investigation over from scratch. However, that would also mean bringing the Kalpoe brothers back in for questioning as well. It would also mean having Joran Van der Sloot returning to Aruba for questioning. The perception of the direction of the investigation looks questionable at best. Why is it that so many of us think that Joran will never feel the sandy white beaches of Aruba beneath his feet ever.

Commissioner Dompig will ask for Natalee Holloway’s classmates to break their silenceDIARIO Aruba 10/26/2005 (Full translation)

The focus is now also in the US; Beth Twitty is part of the investigation and owes Aruba some explanations, According to Commissioner Dompig: A.M. Digital 10/26/2005 (full article)

(Hat Tip: Get A Grip)