ORANJESTAD, Aruba, Nov. 29 (UPI) -- A U.S. citizen was released in Aruba Tuesday after being detained for months in the disappearance of a Maryland woman, his lawyer said.
Gary Giordano had been held in an Oranjestad jail since the Aug. 5 disappearance of Robyn Gardner of Frederick County -- but without a body, a murder weapon or a clear motive, prosecutors were unable to secure an additional 30 days in jail for Giordano while they continued to investigate, ABC News reported.
"We take this in stride," Aruban Solicitor General Taco Stein told CNN.
He said if prosecutors "will seek extradition with the United States" if necessary.
No formal charges have been brought against Giordano, 50, of Gaithersburg, Md., who told investigators he and Gardner were snorkeling when she disappeared. He told investigators he signaled her to swim back to shore with him but when he reached the beach, she was nowhere to be seen.
"I only looked back when I hit a rock," he said. "Before that, I did not look back. I was only busy saving my life."
Giordano stands to collect $1.5 million for a travel insurance policy on Gardner and investigators have said there are inconsistencies in his account of what happened.
"All the investigation has turned up is either nothing or facts that are not relevant to the case," Chris Lejuez, an attorney for Giordano, told The Washington Post.
