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Posted by: kwflatbed




AP


North Carolina authorities are searching for a missing pregnant Marine based at Camp Lejeune and due to give birth any day.
Maria Frances Lauterbach, 20, was reported missing Dec. 19 by her mother, who was the last person to speak with her, on Dec. 13. It is not clear why the disappearance wasn't made public earlier.
Her cell phone was found Dec. 20 near the main gate at Camp Lejeune. Lauterbach is with the 2nd Marine Logistics Group.
Investigators are calling her disappearance suspicious, saying her mother reported that Lauterbach was going to testify about an incident she witnessed on base.
"There are several findings and pieces of evidence that have been discovered that cause law enforcement to be concerned with the circumstances surrounding Maria's disappearance," the sheriff's department said in a news release.
The Onslow County Sheriff’s Department found Lauterbach's abandoned car Monday night, according to a report in the Jacksonville Daily News.
Lauterbach's blue 2006 Hyundai Sonata was found at the Jacksonville Bus Station.

Click here to read the report.

First Lt. Richard Ulsh, a public affairs officer with the 2nd Marine Logistics Group, verified that Lauterbach is on active duty. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy investigators are cooperating with the investigation, he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,321188,00.html

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Posted by: PearlOnyx

Any word on what she was supposed to testify on?

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Posted by: mpd61

Oh Jeezus!

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Posted by: Irish Wampanoag

Quote:

Originally Posted by PearlOnyx Any word on what she was supposed to testify on?

Allegedly she was raped and was going to testify

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Posted by: kwflatbed

Police: Missing Marine bought, never used bus ticket


JACKSONVILLE, North Carolina (CNN) -- A pregnant Marine purchased a bus ticket the day she went missing from Camp Lejeune but never used it, the Onslow County sheriff said Friday.

Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach last spoke to relatives in the Dayton, Ohio, area on December 14.





Sheriff Ed Brown said the ticket was from Jacksonville, North Carolina, to El Paso, Texas.
Roshaun Hames told CNN affiliate WNCT-TV on Friday that he sold the ticket to Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach around 5 p.m. on December 14.
Hames said he thought Lauterbach was alone when she bought the ticket and that she drove off after asking if she could leave her car at the station, WNCT reported.
The ticket was good for six months, but Lauterbach was scheduled to use it December 15, Hames told WNCT, the day Lauterbach's car was left near the station. Bus records show the ticket was never used, Hames said.
The sheriff also said Lauterbach's ATM card was used at the Jacksonville Wal-Mart on December 24, according to CNN affiliate WITN-TV.
Brown is expected to talk to the roommate of Lauterbach on Friday morning and has scheduled a noon press conference with a "major" update in the case.
Lauterbach, 20, last contacted her family in Ohio on December 14 and was reported missing by her mother on December 19.
Documents released by Onslow County authorities on Thursday indicated Lauterbach may have left willingly, perhaps after being upset by a phone call.
The woman's mother, Mary Lauterbach, told authorities that her daughter has a history of being a "compulsive liar," a police report states.
Mary Lauterbach described having a "firm conversation" with Maria Lauterbach about her unborn child, telling her she should give the baby up for adoption because she is unable to care for it.

Watch police face unanswered questions »

"Ms. Maria Lauterbach was telling Mary Lauterbach everything was fine, but Mary Lauterbach had a sense that the statements were not accurate," the report said.
Documents attached to a search warrant in the case cite the Marine's mother as saying Lauterbach had been the victim of a sexual assault by a superior officer.
Brown said Thursday his office had not talked to the person accused in that case and referred any other comment to the Marine Corps. Officials at Camp Lejeune, where Lauterbach is based, have not commented on the assault allegations.
Earlier Thursday, Brown pleaded with Lauterbach to come forward and get help.
"Regardless of the circumstances, this has got to stop," Brown said. "You can't run from those things in life."
Brown said he is leaning toward a positive outcome in the case. "You pray that she's alive," he said.
Mary Lauterbach said her daughter claimed to have been sexually assaulted by a senior officer, but the military investigation had "gone sour," according to the Onslow County reports.
When police consulted with the military on the allegations, the military reported that the case was open, but "it was difficult, due to inconsistencies provided by Maria Lauterbach, the reported victim."
Military investigators also "confirmed the history of compulsive lying," the report said, adding Lauterbach was facing a possible discharge from the Marine Corps and was under personal and professional stress.
A Marine Corps Times story Thursday, citing unnamed sources, said Lauterbach may have fled her post after withdrawing the sexual assault allegations because she feared being charged with making a false statement. The newspaper said the allegations were lodged with Marine Corps officials last year and later withdrawn.
The Marine Corps has brought Lauterbach's roommate, Sgt. Daniel Robert Durham, back to North Carolina from a training deployment in California to answer questions.

Watch the sheriff say why he'll talk with the roommate »

The Onslow County report said Durham told police that he had made his home available to Lauterbach "out of sympathy for her situation" and that the two had shared the home for a short period of time.
Durham said he noticed nothing unusual in Lauterbach's behavior before she disappeared, but he said, "She had been upset by a phone call from her stepmother."
A few items of Lauterbach's were missing, he said -- her car, some cosmetics and clothing -- that led him to believe she may have left willingly. However, Durham told police that Lauterbach was confined to bed most of the time because of her pregnancy and that she "was in no shape for extended outings," according to the reports.
Brown called Durham a close friend who may be the last person known to have talked with Lauterbach before her disappearance.
Brown said Lauterbach may have been due to give birth January 8. The police reports, however, said she was due on February 14 and did not show up for a prenatal medical appointment December 28.
Lauterbach's cell phone was found on a roadside near Camp Lejeune on December 20. Her car was found Monday in the parking lot of a fast-food restaurant, Brown said, and apparently had been there since December 15. The car was processed, he said, but nothing of value was found.
Investigators have said a withdrawal from Lauterbach's bank account was made on December 14 and there was "suspicious activity" on the account 10 days later. Police reports said Lauterbach's ATM card was used at a Marine Federal Credit Union by a man who attempted to cover the surveillance camera with a rag while he withdrew money from her account.
A search warrant released with the other documents Thursday seeks Western Union records, saying authorities have reason to believe Lauterbach may be receiving financial support through money transfers.
Lauterbach is a personnel clerk assigned to Combat Logistics Regiment 27, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, II Marine Expeditionary Force, the Marine Corps said. She joined the service on June 6, 2006.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/01/11/...ef=mpstoryview

Sheriff Expects Missing Pregnant Marine's Roommate Will Provide Break in Case

Friday, January 11, 2008



JACKSONVILLE, N.C. — The sheriff investigating the disappearance of a 20-year-old pregnant Marine said he expected a break in the case Friday once detectives further interview a man who lived with her.
"He's going to answer some questions that I think will shed a lot of light on this case," Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown said early Friday, promising a "major announcement" around midday.
The roommate, Marine Sgt. Daniel Durham, isn't a suspect in the case. But authorities believe Durham to be the last person to speak with the missing woman, who is due to give birth in mid-February, and may have been monitoring the case while on a training mission in California.
Brown has stressed the case remains a missing-person investigation.
The Marine, who vanished last month before she was to testify in a military probe, had said she was sexually assaulted by a senior officer but that the investigation had gone sour, according to court documents.
The woman, a lance corporal, made the allegation to her stepmother, who also told investigators that her stepdaughter was bipolar and had a history of compulsive lying, according to the documents filed this week.
The documents state Naval investigators had struggled to investigate the woman's allegations because of inconsistencies in her account. Still, the court papers said the anticipated birth of the baby "might provide evidentiary credence to charges she lodged with military authorities that she was sexually assaulted by a senior military person."
Authorities said Thursday they planned to question the superior officer at Camp Lejeune. Her stepmother said the officer threatened the missing woman's career, and search warrants filed this week state the woman was facing a possible discharge from the Marine Corps. No reason was provided.
The Associated Press had identified the missing Marine before the allegations of sexual assault became public. The AP generally does not identify people who allege they are victims of sexual assault.
The woman, originally from Dayton, Ohio, was reported missing Dec. 19 by her stepmother, who last spoke with her five days earlier, authorities said. The Marine's cell phone was found Dec. 20 near the main gate at Camp Lejeune, and she missed a Dec. 26 prenatal care appointment.
Authorities found her vehicle at a bus station near the base on the Atlantic coast, and an employee there has told investigators it has been there since about the time of her disappearance. Brown said Friday she had purchased a bus ticket to El Paso, Texas, the day after she spoke with her stepmother, but the ticket has not been used.
Durham told authorities during an initial interview that he didn't report his roommate as missing because some of her personal items were gone from the residence.
According to court documents, state authorities searched Durham's laptop because they believe the woman may have used it to search for directions on the Internet, as well as her cell phone records and the residence she shared with Durham.
The warrants said a white male tried to use the missing woman's ATM card on Christmas Eve and attempted to cover the ATM's security camera with a rag. Brown declined to say where the card was used.
Brown has declined to comment on the rape allegations, as have officials at Camp Lejeune. Wayne Mixon, a Naval Criminal Investigative Service special agent at Camp Lejeune, declined to discuss specifics of the case, other than to say the agency is assisting the sheriff's department with investigative leads in the Marine Corps.
Camp Lejeune officials said the missing woman, who is assigned to the 2nd Marine Logistics Group of the II Marine Expeditionary Force, joined the Marine Corps in June 2006, trained as a personnel clerk and had not deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,321989,00.html

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Posted by: kwflatbed

FNC
Police say missing 20-year-old Marine Maria Lauterbach — due to give birth any day — is dead and a fellow Marine accused of raping her is the suspect. | VIDEO | PHOTOS


JACKSONVILLE, N.C. — A missing 20-year-old Marine due to give birth any day is dead and authorities are trying to locate a corporal she had accused of raping her, a North Carolina sheriff said Friday.
The body of Maria Lauterbach, who vanished nearly a month ago before she was to testify in a military probe, is believed to be located in a shallow grave in coastal Onslow County, said Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown at a press conference.
Lauterbach alleged that she was sexually assaulted by a senior officer but that the investigation had gone sour, according to court documents. Authorities do not know where the suspect — Cpl. Cesar Armando Lauren, 21, is located.
"They don't know where he is," Brown said. "He's gone."

• Click here to see photos.

Lauren is driving a black quad cab 2004 Dodge pickup with North Carolina tags.
A witness came forward to tell authorities where Lauterbach’s body was buried, Brown said. Brown wouldn't comment on cause of death.
Lauterbach, a lance corporal, made the allegation to her stepmother, who also told investigators that her stepdaughter was bipolar and had a history of compulsive lying, according to the documents filed this week.
The court papers said the anticipated birth of the baby "might provide evidentiary credence to charges she lodged with military authorities that she was sexually assaulted by a senior military person."
Lauterbach's roommate, Marine Sgt. Daniel Durham, isn't a suspect in the case. But authorities believe Durham to be the last person to speak with the missing woman, who may have been monitoring the case while on a training mission in California.
The documents state Naval investigators had struggled to investigate Lauterbach's allegations because of inconsistencies in her account. Still, the court papers said the anticipated birth of the baby "might provide evidentiary credence to charges she lodged with military authorities that she was sexually assaulted by a senior military person."
Lauterbach's stepmother said the officer threatened the missing woman's career, and search warrants filed this week state the woman was facing a possible discharge from the Marine Corps. No reason was provided.
Lauterbach, originally from Dayton, Ohio, was reported missing Dec. 19 by her stepmother, who last spoke with her five days earlier, authorities said. The Marine's cell phone was found Dec. 20 near the main gate at Camp Lejeune, and she missed a Dec. 26 prenatal-care appointment.
Lauterbach's blue 2006 Hyundai Sonata was found at the Jacksonville Bus Station Monday night. She had purchased a bus ticket to El Paso, Texas, the day after she spoke with her stepmother, but the ticket has not been used, according to the sheriff.
Durham told authorities during an initial interview that he didn't report his roommate as missing because some of her personal items were gone from the residence.
According to court documents, state authorities searched Durham's laptop because they believe the woman may have used it to search for directions on the Internet, as well as her cell phone records and the residence she shared with Durham.
The warrants said a white male tried to use the missing woman's ATM card on Christmas Eve and attempted to cover the ATM's security camera with a rag. Brown declined to say where the card was used.
Mary Lauterbach, the pregnant Marine's mother, said it's not like her daughter not to contact her.
"It's extremely out of character for her not to call home like this," Lauterbach told FOX News. "I'm deeply concerned that something's wrong."
Camp Lejeune officials said the missing woman, who is assigned to the 2nd Marine Logistics Group of the II Marine Expeditionary Force, joined the Marine Corps in June 2006, trained as a personnel clerk and had not deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,321989,00.html

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Posted by: Sniper

Wow............

POSTED: 10:58 am EST January 11, 2008
UPDATED: 8:34 pm EST January 11, 2008


Authorities said Friday they believe they found the shallow grave of a pregnant Marine in the back yard of a comrade she accused of rape, and a person close to the case said the suspect left a note insisting the woman had killed herself.
After some slight digging in a fire pit discovered in the yard of Marine Cpl. Cesar Armando Laurean, detectives found what "appeared to be burnt human remains," Onslow County District Attorney Dewey Hudson said Friday night.
"We think we have found what will (contain) the skeletal remains of Maria Lauterbach," Hudson said. Authorities placed a tarp and two white tents over the area and planned to begin slowly scraping the earth with garden tools Saturday morning.
Lance Cpl. Maria Frances Lauterbach, 20, vanished three weeks ago, days after she talked to military prosecutors about a rape case against Laurean, who remains at large. Authorities said Friday that information from another woman, a former Marine, left them certain that she is dead.
A source told The Associated Press that the witness is Laurean's wife. Before fleeing Friday, Laurean is said to have given his wife a note that said Lauterbach cut her own throat. Laurean is also said to have stated in the note that he had nothing to do with Lauterbach's suicide.
Lauterbach had claimed Laurean, her superior officer, sexually assaulted her, and she was worried that the investigation was going nowhere, according to court documents. She vanished last month before she was to testify in a military probe.
Brown said the officer had declined to meet with investigators, who no longer knew his whereabouts. Brown said he believes Laurean left town Friday. Paul Chiccarelli of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service said that Laurean was not considered a flight risk.
"They don't know where he is," Brown said of the suspect. "He's gone."
The court papers said the anticipated birth of the baby "might provide evidentiary credence to charges she lodged with military authorities that she was sexually assaulted by a senior military person."
Brown said a key witness in the case said Lauterbach was dead for some time.
She disappeared last month ahead of her expected testimony in a military investigation into her sexual assault. Court documents show the investigation went sour amid inconsistencies in the woman's story and allegations that she's bipolar and a compulsive liar. Search warrants show she was facing a possible discharge from the service.
Brown said the woman had bought a bus ticket to see her family in Dayton but never used it.
Lauterbach's mother reported her missing Dec. 19. Mary Lauterbach last spoke to her daughter Dec. 13. She said the family is concerned because it's out of character for her daughter not to stay in touch.
The Marine's cell phone was found near the main gate at Camp Lejeune the day after her mother reported her missing.

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Posted by: kwflatbed

Cops Dig to Recover Remains of Pregnant Marine From Backyard Grave

Saturday, January 12, 2008



Marine Corps
Cpl. Cesar A. Laurean, 21


JACKSONVILLE, N.C. — Investigators hoped to find the remains of a pregnant Marine on Saturday by slowly scraping dirt from a shallow grave at the home of a comrade whom she said raped her.
Authorities said they found evidence inside the house that suggested Lance Cpl. Maria Frances Lauterbach had been killed, even though the prime suspect left a note insisting she committed suicide, Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown said.
After some slight digging Friday in a fire pit discovered in the yard of Marine Cpl. Cesar Armando Laurean, detectives found what "appeared to be burnt human remains," Onslow County District Attorney Dewey Hudson said.

• Click here to see photos.

"We think we have found what will (contain) the skeletal remains of Maria Lauterbach," Hudson said. Authorities placed a tarp and two white tents over the area and planned to begin slowly scraping the earth with garden tools Saturday.
Lauterbach, 20, vanished three weeks ago, days after she talked to military prosecutors about a rape case against Laurean, who remains at large. Authorities said information from another woman, a former Marine, left them certain she is dead.
Before fleeing Jacksonville on Friday, Laurean left a note that said Lauterbach had "come to his residence and cut her (own) throat," Brown said.
But crime scene investigators found blood stains and obvious signs that a cleanup had taken place inside the home, Brown said.
"Evidence now is showing that what he claimed happened didn't happen," he said.
Authorities learned about the note from Laurean's wife, a person familiar with the investigation told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing. In the note, the person said, Laurean wrote that he had nothing to do with Lauterbach's suicide, but that he had buried her body.
Laurean's wife, Christina, is "heartbroken," said her mother, Debbie Sue Shifflet.
"I feel sorry for the other family," Shifflet said. "It's horrible what they're going through. My heart goes out to them."
Authorities on foot and all-terrain vehicles searched Laurean's neighborhood near Camp Lejeune on Friday. Although the outdoor search was suspended for the night, investigators moved indoors and began a search for blood and other evidence inside his one-story, brown brick ranch home.
The search continued for Laurean, 21, of Clark County, Nev., who had refused to meet with investigators and apparently left the area without telling his lawyers where he was going, the sheriff said.
Lauterbach met with military prosecutors in December to discuss pursuing rape charges against Laurean, said Kevin Marks, supervisory agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service at Camp Lejeune. He said military prosecutors believed they had enough evidence to argue that the case should go to trial.
In court papers filed this week, prosecutors said the anticipated birth of the baby "might provide evidentiary credence to charges she lodged with military authorities that she was sexually assaulted." Lauterbach reported the rape in April and was due to give birth in mid-February, authorities said.
In a brief interview with reporters outside the family's home in Vandalia, Ohio, Lauterbach's uncle, Pete Steiner, said the rapist was the father.
Authorities said they were not concerned that Laurean would flee because they had information the pair carried on a "friendly relationship" even after she reported the assault to military authorities. There is no indication Lauterbach asked the military to protect her after she leveled the rape allegations, investigators said.
Steiner, however, said his niece didn't have any kind of relationship with her attacker, and that Lauterbach had been forced to rent a room off base because of harassment at Camp Lejeune.
"She was raped," Steiner said. "The Marines, unfortunately, did not protect her, and now she's dead."
Originally from Dayton, Ohio, Lauterbach was reported missing Dec. 19 by her mother, who last spoke with her daughter on Dec. 14, authorities said. Her cell phone was found Dec. 20 near the main gate at Camp Lejeune, and she missed a Dec. 26 prenatal care appointment.
Lauterbach was assigned to the 2nd Marine Logistics Group of the II Marine Expeditionary Force, based at Camp Lejeune. She joined the Marines in June 2006, and had not been sent to either Iraq or Afghanistan. Laurean worked in the same unit, where both were personnel clerks.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,322285,00.html

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Posted by: kwflatbed




Remains of adult, fetus found; Marine charged

Human remains, including that of an infant, were discovered Saturday in a shallow pit in the backyard of the primary suspect in the death of a pregnant Marine. Authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Cpl. Cesar Armando Laurean.

full story

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/01/12/...ine/index.html

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Posted by: kwflatbed

By MIKE BAKER, Associated Press Writer



JACKSONVILLE, N.C. - The key suspect in the brutal slaying of a 20-year-old pregnant Marine was spotted several states away from North Carolina, the sheriff said Sunday.
The sighting by a member of the general public happened around midnight, said Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown, who would not say specifically where it occurred. Authorities said they may be less than two hours behind the fugitive, and Brown expressed hope that Marine Cpl. Cesar Armando Laurean would be in custody soon.
"I do feel comfortable that Mr. Laurean will be located," Brown said, adding that the evidence in the case "leads us to believe that he would be a dangerous and violent person if put in a corner."
On Saturday, authorities said they recovered what they believe to be the burnt remains of Marine Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach and her unborn child from a fire pit in Laurean's backyard, where they suspect he burned and buried her body. Those remains have been sent to the state medical examiner's office in Chapel Hill for a formal identification.
Lauterbach disappeared sometime after Dec. 14, not long after she met with military prosecutors to talk about her April allegation that Laurean raped her. Naval investigators said Saturday the rape case was progressing and Laurean was under a protective order to stay away from Lauterbach.
Brown would not say specifically where Laurean was spotted, only describing it as a "transit" sighting. He declined to say whether Laurean was still in the black four-door pickup truck in which they believe he skipped town.
Brown said the FBI, federal Marshals, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation are hunting for Laurean. Sheriff's investigators at the scene are spending much of their time on developing evidence in the investigation, he said.
"While finding him is a main concern, the major concern is that we continue the investigation to clearly find the truth in what happened," he said.
Authorities on Saturday issued an arrest warrant on murder charges for Laurean, 21, of the Las Vegas area. They believe he fled Jacksonville before dawn on Friday after leaving behind a note in which he admitted to burying her body, but said Lauterbach cut her own throat in a suicide.
Citing what he described as a violent confrontation inside Laurean's home — which he said left blood spatters on the ceiling and a massive amount of blood on the wall — Brown has challenged Laurean's assertion Lauterbach killed herself and asked him to come forward to defend his claims of innocence.
Authorities received the note from Laurean's wife, whom Brown has said is cooperating with authorities. Her family has described her as "heartbroken."
Lauterbach's mother reported her daughter missing Dec. 19. She had been placed on "unauthorized absence" status by the Marine Corps and was listed that day as a "missing person at risk" in a national law enforcement database.
Naval investigators said authorities didn't consider Laurean a threat to Lauterbach, or later a flight risk, because they had indications the pair were on friendly terms. Laurean later refused to meet with investigators and left town without telling his lawyers where he was going.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080113/...05ylqH7gOs0NUE

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Posted by: kwflatbed

Marine Accused of Murder on the Run Likely Fled to Mexico

Thursday, January 17, 2008



JACKSONVILLE, N.C. — The key suspect in the slaying of a 20-year-old pregnant Marine told comrades he would flee to Mexico to avoid a conviction on rape charges, and authorities said Wednesday the FBI is now working with Mexican authorities to track him down.
A wide-ranging manhunt for Cpl. Cesar Armando Laurean began last week, after authorities said he fled North Carolina and left behind a note in which he admitted burying the body of Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach, who had accused him of rape. Detectives later found Lauterbach's burned remains in a fire pit in his backyard.
Court documents filed this week by the FBI state Laurean told members of his Marine Corps unit he would flee to Mexico if it appeared he would be found guilty of rape. Laurean's wife also told authorities she believed he would head to Mexico if he was in trouble.

• Click here to see photos from the case.

• Click here to view FBI wanted poster for Cesar Armando Laurean.

"We strongly suspect, but have not confirmed, that Laurean may be in Mexico," said FBI spokesman Richard Kolko in Washington. "We have a strong working relationship with law enforcement partners in Mexico and we're working with them to locate and apprehend him."
Laurean, 21, of Las Vegas, is a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in Mexico and who still has some family there, authorities said. The court documents are included with an FBI criminal complaint charging Laurean with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. He is also wanted in North Carolina on a state arrest warrant for murder.
Laurean appears to have mailed letters back to his wife in North Carolina, according to two law enforcement officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation. It was not immediately clear what the letters said or how many of them were sent. At least one was postmarked from Houston, one of the officials said.
Authorities have said his wife, Christina Laurean, is cooperating with authorities and provided them with the note her husband left before skipping town. In that note, he said Lauterbach committed suicide by cutting her own throat. Authorities have rejected that claim, and autopsy results released Tuesday found she died of "traumatic head injury due to blunt force trauma."
Authorities said the exam failed to answer all the questions detectives have about Lauterbach's death, including whether she gave birth before her death and of the identity of the father.
Lauterbach alleged in May that Laurean had raped her in March and April. A pregnancy test soon after was negative, according to Marine Corps officials, but a test in June was positive. Doctors estimated the date of conception was May 14.
Corps officials said Lauterbach met with prosecutors in November and said she no longer believed Laurean was the father. They said her regimental commander was intent on taking the case to an Article 32 hearing, the military equivalent of a grand jury proceeding.
Col. Gary Sokoloski, the judge advocate general officer for the II Marine Expeditionary Force, said Tuesday that Laurean denied having any sexual contact with her. He also did not violate a military protective order directing him to stay away from Lauterbach and continued to report for work on time in the weeks after her disappearance, he said.
"At no time did she indicate that she was threatened by Cpl. Laurean," Sokoloski said Tuesday. "When she was asked if she felt threatened by Cpl. Laurean, she said she did not feel threatened."
Authorities believe Lauterbach was killed around Dec. 15. Marine officials have they attempted to find her after she failed to report to work on Dec. 17, but had evidence — including a note left for her roommate in which she wrote she was tired of the Marine Corps lifestyle — that led them to believe she left on her own.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,323116,00.html

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Posted by: kwflatbed

Fugitive Marine Sighted in Mexico

By GUILLERMO ARIAS
Associated Press Writer


GUADALAJARA, Mexico --
Missing Marine Cesar Laurean, wanted in the slaying of a pregnant colleague, visited relatives in Mexico last week but left without saying where he was headed, a man identified as his cousin said Tuesday.
Juan Antonio Ramos Ramirez told The Associated Press that Laurean walked into his liquor store on Jan. 14 or Jan. 15, and the two cousins chatted for 10 minutes about their families. Laurean then told Ramos Ramirez that he had to get back to two friends outside, but he might return. He never came back.
CNN first reported Tuesday that Laurean had briefly stopped by Ramos Ramirez's liquor store in Zapopan, just outside Guadalajara.
Days later, Ramos Ramirez saw a television report that Laurean was wanted in the United States for killing 20-year-old Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach.
"We were completely shocked," he said.
Authorities have said they suspected that Laurean had fled to Mexico, but the comments from Ramos Ramirez were the first public confirmation that the Marine had been in the country.
Mexican and U.S. officials said they were looking into the report, but didn't have any more information.
The Marines first began searching for Lauterbach on Dec. 17, after Lauterbach failed to show up for work. Local authorities took up the case Dec. 19, after her mother reported her missing. Three weeks later, officials found Lauterbach's burned remains in a fire pit in Laurean's back yard.
Lauterbach had earlier accused Laurean of rape. Laurean left a note for his wife, Christina, that said Lauterbach slit her own throat with a knife, and he then buried her in the woods near their home.
An autopsy found that Lauterbach died of blunt force trauma to the head.
CNN reported Tuesday night that Laurean had mailed two other letters to his family before crossing the border. On Jan. 11, Laurean boarded a bus in Raleigh, N.C., headed for Houston, where he caught a second bus to Mexico for about $170, CNN quoted an unidentified law enforcement official as saying.
The second bus driver told authorities Laurean identified himself as Armando Ramirez, the same official said.
CNN also showed video of a man authorities believe is Laurean withdrawing money from Lauterbach's bank account at an ATM on Dec. 24.
Ramos Ramirez said he didn't contact police about his cousin because he believes Laurean is innocent.
"It didn't seem right to contact police," he said. "He is a normal person, with no tendency for doing bad things."
He said police still hadn't contacted him about his cousin late Tuesday, despite the international manhunt.
Officials in Jalisco state, home to Guadalajara, said they hadn't been formally notified of Laurean's warrant.
Ramos Ramirez said Laurean and most of the Marine's family moved to the U.S. more than 10 years ago, and he had seen Laurean only three other times since. The second time, five years ago, Laurean came for vacation and spent a few days with Ramos Ramirez's mother, Maria Ramirez.
Laurean hasn't contacted any other family members in Mexico, Ramos Ramirez said.
He said Laurean didn't stay long, and didn't say anything about why he was in Mexico or where he was headed next. Ramos Ramirez said he wasn't surprised by the brief visit because Laurean isn't very close to relatives in Mexico. His cousin seemed calm, he added.
"It was like any visit," Ramos Ramirez said.
_____
Associated Press writer Traci Carl contributed to this report from Mexico City.


Wire service

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Posted by: kwflatbed

Marine indicted on murder charge in N.C.

By ESTES THOMPSON, Associated Press Writer



JACKSONVILLE, N.C. - A grand jury indicted a Marine corporal Thursday on a first-degree murder charge in the death of a pregnant colleague, but a prosecutor said he wouldn't seek the death penalty if the man is arrested in Mexico.
Authorities believe Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean has fled to his native Mexico, which refuses to send anyone back to the United States unless provided assurances they won't face the death penalty.
"This agreement to not seek the death penalty applies only if he is arrested in and extradited from Mexico," said Onslow County District Attorney Dewey Hudson.
The remains of Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach, 20, were found with those of her fetus earlier this month in a fire pit in Laurean's back yard. Lauterbach, who had once accused Laurean of rape, had been missing since mid December
Before Laurean fled from Jacksonville in early January, he left a note for his wife, Christina, that said Lauterbach slit her own throat with a knife, and he then buried her in the woods near their home. Detective have rejected that claim, and an autopsy found that Lauterbach died of blunt force trauma to the head.
Hudson said the grand jury also charged Laurean with robbery with a dangerous weapon and a charge involving an unauthorized financial transaction involving card theft. The indictment states Laurean forced Lauterbach to remove money from her bank account on Dec. 14, the same day authorities believe he killed her.
But because authorities have determined that Lauterbach's child had not been born at the time of her death, Hudson said, prosecutors could only charge Laurean with one count of murder.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080124/...sN4Yuv3VOs0NUE

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Posted by: kwflatbed

Mexico issues warrant for missing Marine

By JOHN RICE, Associated Press Writer



MEXICO CITY - Mexican officials have issued an arrest warrant for a U.S. Marine suspected of killing a pregnant colleague who had accused him of rape, a U.S. Embassy official said Tuesday.

A cousin told reporters last week that Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean visited family in the area of Guadalajara, Mexico, this month, but left without saying where he was headed.
The burned remains of Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach were found with those of her fetus earlier this month in a fire pit in the back yard of Laurean's house in Jacksonville, N.C., and Laurean, is being sought on an indictment charging first-degree murder. Both were stationed at Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Laurean was born in Mexico and fled after leaving a note for his wife in North Carolina saying that Lauterbach cut her own throat and that he had buried her body.
Authorites say she did not commit suicide, and an autopsy found that she died of blunt force trauma to the head. Prosecutors have pledged not to pursue the death penalty if Laurean is found in Mexico, which refuses to send anyone back to the U.S. unless provided assurances they will not face execution.
A U.S. Embassy official, who was not authorized to give a name, said Mexican officials had issued a warrant for Laurean's arrest on a U.S. extradition request. The official did not say when the warrant was issued.
Mary Lauterbach, the mother of the dead Marine, told NBC's "Today" show that the Marine Corps should consider basic procedural changes, "such as a mandatory base move if a person requests it after a rape accusation."
"We want to change the climate so that any time a woman is attacked and, you know, wants to report it, that she can do so without the fear that the repercussions from reporting it will be far worse than the rape itself," Lauterbach said.
CNN first reported that Mexico was seeking his arrest.
Juan Antonio Ramos Ramirez told The Associated Press that Laurean, his cousin, walked into his liquor store in a Guadalajara suburb on Jan. 14 or Jan. 15, and chatted for a few minutes. Ramos Ramirez said his cousin never came back.
Lauterbach failed to show up for work in mid-December and her body was found three weeks later.
Lauterbach's family has said she was harrassed at Camp Lejeune, the massive base on the Atlantic coast where she and Laurean served in the same logistics unit as personel clerks. The Marines have said her car was keyed once and that she reported that she had been punched in the face.
The Marines ordered Laurean to stay away from Lauterbach one day after she reported the rape in May, and later issued a protective order to keep them apart. Their regimental commander also assigned Lauterbach to work in a separate building across the base from Laurean, although the Marines said earlier this month that Lauterbach reported that she did not feel threatened by him.
Laurean denied the rape accusation. Naval investigators have said they have no phyiscal evidence or witness accounts to corroborate Lauterbach's claims, but Lauterbach's and Laurean's regimental commander was intent on taking the case to a hearing that could have led to a trial.
Lauterbach's family has complained that the Marines and local officials didn't respond with enough urgency to her disappearance in mid-December. At that time, Mary Lauterbach told sheriff's officials in North Carolina her daughter was a "complusive liar," a comment she has repeatedly said was a mistake.
"I said, you know, she had problems, you know, with occasional lying," Lauterbach said on NBC. "And that got — just a piece of that was pulled out. So it was really misstated."
Prosecutors believe Lauterbach was killed Dec. 14. Marine officials have said they attempted to find her after she failed to report to work on Dec. 17, but had evidence — including a note left for her roommate in which she said she was tired of the Marine Corps lifestyle — that led them to believe she left on her own.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080129/...f7N60NHp6s0NUE

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Posted by: Sniper

'BOUT TIME !!!!!!! I would give an awful lot to have 5 minutes alone with this PU$$Y behind closed doors !!!!!

RALEIGH, N.C. - A Marine wanted in the brutal slaying of a pregnant colleague who had accused him of rape was arrested Thursday night in Mexico after a three-month international manhunt, authorities said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080411/...missing_marine

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Posted by: kwflatbed

FBI Captures Marine Killing Suspect in Mexico

By TRACI CARL
Associated Press Writer



Fri Apr 11, 12:11 AM ET

Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean, left, is presented by police in Morelia, Mexico, Thursday, April 10, 2008. Laurean, who was wanted in the brutal slaying of a pregnant fellow Marine at Camp Lejeune who had accused him of rape, was arrested Thursday night in Mexico after a three-month international manhunt, authorities said.(AP Photo/Alexandre Meneghini)


MORELIA, Mexico --
A Marine suspected of killing a pregnant colleague told police he slept in fields and survived by eating fruit that he found during a three-month manhunt that ended with his arrest in western Mexico, authorities said.
FBI agents and police in the small town of Tacambaro arrested Cpl. Cesar Laurean on Thursday. He is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Marine Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach, whose burned remains were found in January in the backyard of his home near Camp Lejeune.
Bearded, thin and chained at the wrists and ankles, Laurean spoke briefly with The Associated Press while being held at the Michoacan state Attorney General's Office in Morelia, the state capital. He appeared slightly disoriented and stared straight ahead, his eyes occasionally filling up with tears as he answered a reporter's questions in terse phrases.
"You know my name. You know who I am," Laurean said. Asked if he wanted to say anything, Laurean answered, "Proof," but wouldn't explain.
Asked what he would do next, he replied, "Do I have a choice?... I don't know."
The FBI said Laurean, 21, is awaiting extradition to the U.S., although local prosecutors in North Carolina cautioned the process could take a year or more if he decides to fight it.
Magdalena Guzman, a prosecutors' spokeswoman, said police carrying out an anti-kidnapping operation stopped Laurean as he wandered on a street because they thought he looked suspicious.
When they realized he didn't speak Spanish well, they became even more suspicious. After running his name through a computer - and recognizing his distinctive tattoos - they realized Laurean was wanted in the United States to face charges in Lauterbach's death.
Guzman said Laurean told the arresting officers he had only 10 pesos - about $1 - in his pocket when arrested.
U.S. Ambassador Tony Garza said in a statement that "Laurean fled to Mexico early this year in the hope of avoiding justice" and called the arrest "a clear message to all would-be fugitives from U.S. law that Mexico will not provide them refuge."
Laurean, of Las Vegas, was born in Guadalajara, but family members there have said he moved to the U.S. more than 10 years ago. He had told members of his unit that he would flee to Mexico if it appeared he would be found guilty. Authorities believe he entered Mexico on a bus on Jan. 14.
Lauterbach and Laurean were both personnel clerks in the same logistics unit at Camp Lejeune, an expansive coastal North Carolina base that is home to roughly 50,000 Marines. Detectives believe Laurean killed Lauterbach, who was 20 and eight months pregnant, on Dec. 14 after forcing her to remove money from her bank account.
Detectives have said Laurean left behind a note for his wife in which he denied killing Lauterbach but admitted to burying her remains. In the note, Laurean said Lauterbach committed suicide by cutting her own throat.
Authorities rejected the assertion, saying evidence indicates Lauterbach died of blunt force trauma to the head.
Lauterbach accused Laurean of rape last spring, a charge he denied and one that Naval investigators were unable to corroborate. Even though Lauterbach later told investigators she did not feel Laurean posed a danger or threat to her, the pair was separated on base. The Marines have said their regimental commander was intent on taking the case to a hearing that could have led to a trial.
Onslow County District Attorney Dewey Hudson has agreed not to seek execution in order to win the cooperation of Mexico, which refuses to send anyone back to the U.S. unless provided assurance they will not face a death sentence.
Tipped by the note, and not long after authorities went public in their search for the Lauterback, detectives discovered the charred remains of the missing Marine and her fetus in a shallow grave in Laurean's backyard.
Phone messages seeking comment left at Lauterbach's parents' home in Vandalia, Ohio, with Lauterbach's uncle Pete Steiner, and with family attorney Chris Conard were not immediately returned late Thursday.
Another family attorney, Merle Wilberding, said Lauterbach's mother, Mary, received the call from the FBI informing her of the arrest with "shock and surprise."
"She's been living with Cpl. Laurean being on the run ... and living without an expectation that he was going to be captured any time soon, so when the word came it really caught her by surprise, and she's still trying to let it all sink in," Wilberding told WDTN-TV in Dayton, Ohio.
A woman who answered the phone at the home of Laurean's father-in-law, Bruce Shifflet, near Prospect, Ohio, hung up without commenting when told of the arrest.
___
Associated Press writers Estes Thompson in Raleigh, North Carolina and Mark Stevenson in Mexico City contributed to this report.


Wire Service

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Posted by: kwflatbed

Updates:

Wife Refused to Help Marine Wanted in Pregnant Colleague's Killing


Capture of Cabin Dweller Cesar Laurean Shocks Mexican Villagers Who Knew Him

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Posted by: resqjyw0

Wanted Marine may have e-mailed sheriff

Message from Mexico sought immunity from court martial, sheriff says


Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean, wanted in the brutal
slaying of a pregnant Marine at Camp LeJeune,
was arrested Thursday night in Mexico after a
three-month international manhunt, authorities said.


updated 24 minutes ago

RALEIGH, N.C. - Detectives want to know whether a Marine charged with the brutal slaying of a pregnant colleague e-mailed North Carolina authorities to ask about turning himself in while he was on the run in Mexico.

However, Onslow County sheriff's officials cautioned Saturday that they are not sure whether a March 30 e-mail that claimed to be from Cpl. Cesar Laurean is genuine. Among other concerns, it was sent with the wrong spelling of Laurean's name, as Lauren.

"I tend to think it's less than a 50 percent probability," said sheriff's Capt. Rich Sutherland. "It had no impact on him being apprehended."

Laurean was arrested Thursday in a small town in Mexico. He is charged with the December killing of Marine Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach, who had accused him of rape. The burned remains of her body and her fetus were found buried in his backyard.

He faces an extradition process that will take at least 60 days, and maybe longer than a year, depending on whether he fights efforts to return him to the United States.

The e-mail was sent to Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown. Sutherland said it appeared to have been sent from Mexico and was consistent with others that authorities know he sent while in hiding.

It read: "Sir, Can you assure immunity from a military court martial if I come back? , I know they will convict me with no evidence, I cant risk Leavenworth or a chain gang, what can you do for me?"

Laurean is charged with first-degree murder in civilian court. While the military could technically seek charges at the same time as civilian authorities, legal experts have said such a joint prosecution is not recommended by the military's manual for courts-martial and happens rarely.

Three days after receiving the e-mail, Brown replied, telling Laurean that turning himself in would be the "wisest thing you could do."

Brown also said he could not give an assurance of immunity from court-martial, but he added, "I understand the military is leaving everything up to the civilian authorities."

Police arrested Laurean, 21, of Las Vegas, as he was walking along the main street of San Juan de la Vina in the Mexican municipality of Tacambaro. He was born in Guadalajara but reportedly moved to the U.S. more than 10 years ago.

While in Mexico, Laurean communicated with his wife, Christina, using the MySpace social-networking service and repeatedly asked for help _ which she refused. Onslow County District Attorney Dewey Hudson has said that evidence recovered from the computer Christina Laurean used allowed detectives to identify the Internet cafes in Mexico where Laurean was accessing the Web.

Sutherland said Friday that Christina Laurean fully cooperated with investigators.

Laurean and Lauterbach were assigned to the same logistics unit at Camp Lejeune, a base on the North Carolina coast that is home to about 50,000 Marines.

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