Why Would the Innocent Lie?
 
By anonymous internet poster Nomdeguerre

I wish I had a dollar - no, make that a quarter, it would be plenty - for every time someone at SM, BFN, etc. has posted that Joran van der Sloot and the Kalpoe brothers must be guilty of doing something to Natalee, because, "Why would the innocent lie?" I could retire rich and spend all my time lying on the beach in Aruba. LOL

Friends, I'm a retired law enforcement officer, and I'm here to tell you that the innocent lie all the time. It's a dumb thing to do, and it often gets them in more trouble, but there is no bright white line that connects lying to guilt per se, especially in the early stages of an investigation. Just a few reasons that I can remember having innocent people lie to me in my career:

(1) They're scared. For example, they know they were in and around a place where a crime occurred. Even though they know they had nothing to do with it, they don't know who did, and they know the police don't, either. In order to avoid suspicion, they try to place themselves somewhere else.

(2) Subset of #1: They panic. This sometimes occurs because an interrogator comes on too strong. I usually tried to avoid throwing somebody against the wall verbally until I knew I had them. You don't want to get an innocent subject locked into a lie. Wait till you have evidence you can throw in their face.

(3) They're not guilty of what you're questioning them about, but they feel guilty about something else. I once had a case where an employee denied being in the building when a theft occurred from an office safe; he was one of three people having the combination. Sign-in sheets maintained by the guard at the front desk gave his statement the lie and made us suspect him even more. Turns out he was there, alright, but nowhere near where the theft occurred: he was meeting a co-worker after-hours in her office on another floor. They were both married and having an affair. Took polygraphing a few people to finally sort that one out. If he had told us the truth from the beginning, he wouldn't have been in trouble - at least not with the government, LOL.

This may be what prompted Joran and the Kalpoes to lie initially. While I see no evidence that they did anything to hurt Natalee directly, they know they dumped her at a time and place where she could have run into trouble before getting back to her room. Joran has said as much in some of his interviews.

(4) They're protecting someone else.