Van der Sloot Confession Upheld by Peru Judge

LIMA, Peru (CBS/AP) Joran van der Sloot's attempt to suppress his confession to the murder of Stephany Flores, the 21-year-old Peruvian woman found dead in his hotel room, has been denied by a Peru judge.

PICTURES: Van der Sloot Hotel Room Crime Scene

Van der Sloot gave a full confession to Flores' murder, according to police, but he has since recanted, claiming in a jailhouse interview that the confession was coerced.

Maximo Altez, van der Sloot's attorney, argued that his client's confession should be voided because the attorney representing him at the time was state-appointed.

Superior Court Judge Wilder Casique rejected the habeas corpus motion, making note of the fact that in addition to the state-appointed lawyer, van der Sloot had been afforded a Dutch-Spanish interpreter approved by the Dutch Embassy.

Altez has said that he plans to appeal the decision to a higher court.

The Dutchman faces charges of first-degree murder and robbery for the May 30 death of Stephany Flores. He is also the main suspect in the 2005 disappearance of Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway.

Police say he smashed in the face of Flores, the student he met playing poker before leading her back to his hotel room. According to police, van der Sloot then strangled her, threw her to the floor and emptied her wallet.

On Thursday, Peruvian police reported that they have found DNA evidence under Flores' fingernails, but have not reported whether they have matched it to van der Sloot, according to CNN.

Explicit crime scene photos, obtained exclusively by 48 Hours | Mystery from sources close to the investigation and published exclusively byCrimesider show a severely beaten Flores, her body badly bruised, her clothes stained with blood.

According to an official toxicology report obtained by CBS News, Flores had amphetamines in her blood when she died.