Stephany Flores Ramírez

21-year-old Stephany Tatiana Flores Ramírez, daughter of a former Peruvian Presidential candidate, after winning big at the casino, experienced a cerebral hemorrhage due to being choked and bludgeoned to death when reading about her killer’s shocking identity on his computer.

On the fifth anniversary of the death of Natalee Holloway, Stephany Flores Ramírez was bludgeoned to death with a tennis racket and choked with her killer’s shirt after a big night at the casino. Did the killer strike again?

Who is Stephany Flores Ramírez and how did she get involved with Joran van der Sloot?

Stephany Flores Ramírez, a 21-year-old third-year business student at the University of Lima, was an avid poker player and well-known as the only member of the prominent Ramírez family. She lived at home with her father, Ricardo Flores – a Vice-Presidential and Presidential Candidate who made the bulk of his living as a race car driver, and her four brothers, who ran an extremely successful event planning. In her family’s eyes, Stephany was viewed as ‘God’s Grace’; She was very respectful, polite, warm-hearted, and great with new people.

Poker tournaments and casinos have always had the reputation of having seedy people. One of those individuals, Joran van der Sloot, came to Lima through Colombia to attend a prestigious Texas Hold’Em tournament, part of the Latin American Poker Tour, at the Atlantic City Casino in Lima. There was only one problem. He didn’t have enough money to pay the entry fee due on June 2^nd. Van der Sloot lost a lot of money that day. He had a long-known gambling addiction that often crippled him fiscally.

Unlike Van der Sloot, Stephany Flores Ramírez won big. $10,000 big. The circumstances surrounding how the two of them met are unknown today. They quickly got to chatting, probably about poker, the tournament, and their winnings. Drinks were passed rapidly around. Van der Sloot enjoyed ten glasses of whiskey and Pisco; perhaps the two even shared in some amphetamines. The party continued, and they went to van der Sloot’s hotel room to play some online poker. There was marijuana and more drugs. Van der Sloot left the hotel to buy two cups of coffee and a loaf of bread. He told hotel staff not to “bother his girl.” Ramírez opened up van der Sloot’s laptop while he was gone. Van der Sloot came back. He was paranoid and frantic.

Three days later, Ramírez’s body was found dead in the Hotel TAC

Ramirez never came home the morning of May 30^th. Her father Ricardo and older brother Enrique, along with his wife, were on the lookout for her. They contacted the police. After the police obtained footage of van der Sloot, the sole suspect was named. A report was set out, and the family was informed. Enrique’s wife quickly found out about van der Sloot.

Van der Sloot murdered American 18-year-old Natalee Holloway in Aruba five years ago. Charges were dropped because not enough information linked him to the crime, but he was notorious for making suggestive and goading comments to Holloway’s family. The Holloway death was global news. Natalee Holloway died on May 30, 2005. Five years to the date before Ramírez’s end. The family’s worst hopes were coming true.

Ramírez’s car was abandoned. No money was found, but there were date rape drugs. Her cash, wallet, credit cards, watch, ID, and jewelry were missing.

Police finally checked the hotel room. There Ramírez’s lifeless body was dead on the ground. She had severe head trauma that caused a cerebral hemorrhage. She also had a broken neck and a cranial fracture. There were signs of asphyxiation. A tennis racquet was also found and believed to be a murder weapon.

At this time, Van der Sloot made his way to Chile. The Investigations Police of Chile arrested him on the highway with a bloody shirt, the same shirt he wore when getting coffee and bread. The shirt was covered in a blood type that matched Ramírez’s blood. He also had a laptop, foreign currency, naval charts of Chilean waters, and a phone with a missing SIM card. He was flown back to Peru after being arrested and detained.

Piecing the Story Together

Interrogation soon took place. Van der Sloot claimed his innocence. Peru has leniency laws for crimes of passion and murder’s done under intoxication. He was likely aiming for this, given that he admitted to the murder. However, after four days of claiming innocence, his story switched up.

He often gave his story, filling in and altering new and current details. This was roughly his story.

“I came back from getting us coffee and bread to find her on my computer. I was very drunk at this point and not fully conscious of the events that transpired. I wouldn’t have done it otherwise. I was in an uncontrollable fit of rage. I knew what she saw, and I knew what she thought. She struck me. I couldn’t take it. I began beating her in the face until it got bloody. I then grabbed the tennis racquet and struck her more. My shirt was drenched in her blood. Things got ugly and out of hand. I then choked her to death. I had to leave, and I left.”

Note: This isn’t his quote. I just thought it would be more dramatic in the first person.

Investigation Details

The story was piecing itself together, and Van der Sloot awaited his trial. The police did more rounds of questioning. Van der Sloot was fluent in Spanish, which he denied despite being corroborated by his lawyer. He wanted a new lawyer, one not appointed by the state, and a new translator. He was granted neither.

He tried to corroborate with American and Aruban authorities for his release or transfer for the location of Natalee Holloway’s body, but neither party was interested. Van der Sloot was facing arrest in the US for committing wire fraud when he attempted to get money out of her similarly.

More information about the case was learned and became public after Ramírez’s body was exhumed. Ramírez was not raped, and she did not have sex with van der Sloot. There was a slight trace of amphetamines in her system. The FBI and Chilean police worked together to get information off van der Sloot’s computer. They found damaging search results. Van der Sloot likely wanted to obtain a fake Chilean passport and made contingency plans for extradition if captured. No information was searched or found on Holloway.

A Man Behind Bars – The Verdict

A trial finally started on June 11, 2010, and lasted until January 11, 2012. Van der Sloot was found guilty of murder. All three jurists found him guilty. He was sentenced to 28 years of imprisonment and has to pay $75,000 to the Flores. After serving his time in a Peruvian maximum-security prison, he will be sent to the United States to serve five years for wire fraud.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Joran van der Sloot now?

Joran Van der Sloot started his sentence in Piedras Gordas prison. In 2014, he was transferred to Challapalco prison and was stabbed two months later. He currently is serving the rest of his sentence in the Peruvian National Penitentiary Institute.

What did Joran van der Sloot do to Stephany Flores?

Joran van der Sloot murdered Stephany Flores Ramírez in a hotel room in Lima, Peru. He was intoxicated, and she likely brought up van der Sloot’s past. Van der Sloot bludgeoned her to death with a tennis racquet and choked her with his bloody shirt.

Is Joran van der Sloot married?

In 2014, Joran van der Sloot got married to Leidy Figueroa, a Peruvian woman selling goods to prisoners at Challapalco prison at the time of their meeting. They have a child together. Van der Sloot often gets propositions from women to marry them.