Photo Sparks New Search in Natalee Holloway Case

(March 20) -- Authorities in Aruba said today they would launch a new search in the Natalee Holloway case after a Pennsylvania couple came forward with an underwater photo that they believe may show human remains.

Patti Muldowney snapped the image while she and her husband were snorkeling off the coast of Aruba.

"It would be great if this is Holloway, and her family could get the closure that's needed," 78-year-old John Muldowney told AOL News.

The photo was captured in October in about 15 feet of water, but the film was not developed until December, according to Muldowney. As they looked through the shots, Patti remarked, "'My God, this looks like a skeleton,'" he said. "And then we all looked and said, 'It sure does.' Our first thought then was that it was Natalee Holloway.'"

Muldowney says he took the photo to a friend who is a Navy SEAL and also to his family doctor to get their opinions on the photo.

"I did not prompt them in any way," he said. "They would go, 'Yeah, I see this snake here on the side,' and then they would notice the bottom and say, 'This looks like a body.' When my doctor looked at the picture, he said, 'It's definitely a body,' so then we decided to contact the police."

The local police put Muldowney in touch with the FBI, who instructed him to send the photo to their Philadelphia office. The photo was sent via certified mail on Feb. 4. Later, the FBI said he was allowed to release it to the media.

Examining the Photo

One of the news agencies that reached out was CNN's "Nancy Grace." Muldowney said he could not agree to appear on the show until he first spoke with Natalee's father, Dave Holloway.

"I spoke with Dave yesterday and told him we did not want to do it unless he was OK with it," Muldowney said. "He told us we had his blessings and that we should go on the show because it also airs in Aruba and that would help keep it in the media. So we did."

Muldowney said that CNN sent a car for him and his wife this morning, and they were taken to a television station where they were interviewed via satellite by Nancy Grace and a panel of experts. The show aired Friday night.

"They were pretty much divided," Muldowney said. "Some of the experts said it doesn't look like a body, but they did not want to come right out and say that it isn't. Another one said it looked like a skeleton, on its back, with rocks on top of it. That person pointed out what looked like fingers and said there appeared to be rotted clothing on the remains. Another expert pointed out that it could be a body because the Caribbean water isn't as acidic as the Pacific or the Atlantic, and it wouldn't mess up a body in four years."

AOL News asked Sean Henady, founder of 3 View Search Services, to look at the photo and give his opinion of it. Henady is a missing person search and recovery expert who specializes in aerial and sonar imaging.

"Due to the quality of the image, it is difficult to tell," Henady said. "My first impression is that it is rocks and stuff. These are not the shapes I would expect to see."

Henady said it is a "long stretch to make this a person," but he said it should be checked out by a "qualified team."

"I would recommend using side-scan sonar or doing a sector scan to qualify or dismiss it," Henady said.

The Scene in Aruba

Aruban authorities were planning to dispatch a dive team to investigate the area where the Muldowneys snapped the photo "in the very near future," a spokeswoman for the prosecutor's office told ABC News today.

"We try to leave no stone unturned, so we will look into it," Deputy Chief Adolpho Richardson of the Aruban police told The Birmingham News on Friday. "Although the chances are very slim that it will lead to any results."

The FBI has declined to comment on the photo, citing the "ongoing investigation."

"So that's where it's at, and I'm not doing any more interviews until they find it," Muldowney said. "If it's not Natalee, it might be somebody else, and somebody might get closure out of this."

Natalee Holloway, 18, from Mountain Brook, Ala., disappeared May 30, 2005, while on a trip to Aruba to celebrate her high school graduation. Her body has never been found.

Holloway's classmates said they last saw her leaving Carlos 'n Charlie's nightclub with Joran van der Sloot, then a 17-year-old Dutch honors student living in Aruba, and his two friends, Surinamese brothers Deepak and Satish Kalpoe. All three young men were arrested, but they were released without charge.

From the onset of the case, van der Sloot allegedly has made multiple confessions, each varying significantly. As a result, Aruban prosecutors have deemed them a mixture of "lies and fantasy" and have decided not to take action against him

Dave Holloway is vacationing and could not be reached for comment. An attorney for Beth Holloway, Natalee's mother, told NBC Philadelphia that she is aware of the photo but is choosing not to comment.