Natalee Holloway: A Case That Captivated The Nation

The Search Party Was Almost a Success

The search party proved unsuccessful, but the most heartbreaking part was that they were so close to finding Elizabeth. Elizabeth recalled in her book that she heard her uncle’s voice in the search party but was too terrified to scream out because Mitchell had told her that if she tried to escape, he would kill her family.

Days after the kidnapping, Smart was almost rescued by the search team when a helicopter hovered over their makeshift camp. She was tied to a tree with steel cables, but as soon as the helicopter got close enough that the trees literally bent around the helicopter’s propellers, she was forced inside. After about a minute, the helicopter flew away.