Van der Sloot appeals 28-year Peru murder sentence as excessive

1/23/2012

LIMA, Peru — Joran van der Sloot’s attorney says he has appealed his client’s 28-year sentence for murdering a young Peruvian woman he met in a Lima casino.

Attorney Jose Jimenez says the three judges who sentenced Van der Sloot on Jan. 13 did not take into account his client’s initial confession to police.

Jimenez said Monday that Van der Sloot never denied killing Stephany Flores. Her May 2010 death came five years to the day after the disappearance in Aruba of Alabama teen Natalee Holloway.

Van der Sloot remains the main suspect in that case.

He is at Piedras Gordas prison north of Lima, where his lawyer says he is temporarily segregated from other inmates.

Jimenez says the appeal was filed last week.