Fugitive Marine's Truck Found In N.C.

(CBS/AP)  Police investigating the murder of Camp Lejeune Marine Maria Lauterbach say they have a break in the case. Tuesday afternoon investigators located the truck belonging to the man suspected of killing her. Authorities found Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean's truck at a hotel near Morrisville, North Carolina, reports CBS affiliate WRAL.

Laurean is the object of a nationwide manhunt. He is wanted for murder and has been eluding police since mid-December. Maria Lauterbach was reported missing about a week before Christmas Day, and her body was recovered from a shallow grave in Onslow County, N.C.

Earlier, a medical examiner cast doubt on Laurean's claims that Lauterback had committed suicide.

Dr. Charles Garrett, the Onslow County medical examiner, said Lauterbach, who was eight months pregnant when she vanished, died from "traumatic head injury due to blunt force trauma."

Authorities recovered her burned remains, along with those of her child, over the weekend from a fire pit in the backyard of Laurean, a fellow personnel clerk at Camp Lejeune whom she had accused of rape.

The autopsy did not answer all the questions about the circumstances of Lauterbach's death, said county prosecutor Dewey Hudson. Detectives are still not sure if she gave birth before her slaying, he said.

Laurean, 21, is believed to have fled Jacksonville early Friday morning, after leaving a note in which he admitted burying Lauterbach's body. But Tuesday, officials said they think he has gone into hiding and is no longer on the run.

"We believe it's certainly possible, based on him being out there for this long, and not having any sightings, that he is getting help," said Onslow County Sheriff's Capt. Rick Sutherland. "We think we have a handle on all his contacts, but there could be someone else out there helping."

In his note, Laurean alleged that Lauterbach committed suicide by cutting her own throat. Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown has consistently rejected that idea, citing blood spatters on the ceiling and a massive amount of blood on the wall found inside Laurean's home as signs of a violent confrontation.

Officials have offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to Laurean's arrest and have posted or plan to post billboards with his picture in cities nationwide, including Columbus, Ohio, Tampa, Fla., and Las Vegas.

Authorities received reports from several witnesses Sunday who said they saw Laurean at a bus station in Shreveport, La., but Brown has said detectives have been unable to confirm their validity.


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[formrusmcsgt]

Posted by tuckerndfw at 03:57 AM : Jan 16, 2008

While this man is yet to be apprehended and tried, it doesn''t look good for him, tuck.

The woman died of blunt force trauma.

She was murdered in his home.

Her corpse was burned in his back yard and then buried in his back yard.

He fled.

While he still deserves a fair trial, at this point, all of these facts point more to his guilt than innocence.

[Krazcarl]

Ice,,,why do you get taken in by tuck''s ramblings he''s just the lonely villsge idiot trying to get a rise out of someone he''s not that stupid {I think}.

[twitchery]

even if he''s not guilty, his running is not helping his case. most innocent people do not run, and according to the reports in story, the facts do not match what he wrote to his wife.

[missingamerica]

It might be tough to find this guy, if he had to foresight to get some Mexican identity papers. Something tells me it is not too difficult to get false Mexican identity papers.

Having those, coupled with forgetting most of his English and providing a simple story about a family emergency down south, should find him sympathetic ears in the illegal immigrant pipeline.

[iceman_1960]

tuckerndfw is constantly referring to "lynching" and "lynch mobs."

Who"s playing the race card ?

It is not a lynch mob mentality to have an opinion about a man who has obviously gone on the lam after a woman he was romantically involved in, has been beaten to death with a blunt instrument.

If I WERE on the jury, however, I would put that aside, take a fresh look at the evidence, and I know myself well enough to say that if there was a reasonable doubt about his guilt, I would vote to acquit.

A reasonable doubt, not just any doubt. No guilty man would ever be punished in UFO abductions or one-armed men are presumed to offer a shred of doubt.

tuckerndfw on the other hand would work tirelessly for Laurean"s acquittal, just as if he were being paid by the defense team. He would do anything and everything to subvert the process.

He claims that if gender were reversed in this case, his opinions about it would be the same.

This claim is completely false, and only a naive fool would be taken in by it.

[iceman_1960]

"And, you continually refer to gender, demonstrating your gender bias."
- Posted by tuckerndfw at 01:15 AM : Jan 16, 2008

Look who"s talking. I"d sooner be lectured on tolerance by Louis Farrakhan.

Your hypocrisy is blatant.

Did you not say recently that it is "inherent" and "part of human nature" for people to turn to "white males" for leadership in times of crisis ?

Do you not refer to women who dare to show independence or assertiveness, as "whining Bimbos" ?

I don"t know your personal history, but you fit the profile of the aging white executive who has been downsized at work and replaced by an aggressive young female fresh out of grad school with an MBA.

If this guy killed her, and he walks because of the blatant prejudice of people like you, the blood of his future victims will be on your hands.

[brianbwb-2009]

And you have the unmitigated gall to question my objectivity ? Posted by Iceman_1960

Don''t you get it, ice? The guy is Tucker''s relative. Now if the guy had been an Arab, or Muslim, or God forbid, a "Black" man, tuck himself would be tying the 13 loops in the noose already, and the Marines would have had him locked down even before the girl died.

[iceman_1960]

RE: Post by tuckerndfw at 12:11 AM : Jan 16, 2008

Nice wiggle.

When her alleged bipolar condition and
compulsive lying" were reported, I posted on the situation "thusly":

"If it"s true, it can"t be covered up. It is essential for a fair trial; otherwise a verdict could be overturned later. But it must be verified by a medical expert." - again quoting my post from memory.

Your immediate reaction to the same information was simply to assume its veracity, and to declare her "insane, schizo, nutsie."

And you have the unmitigated gall to question my objectivity ?

[iceman_1960]

Annd maybe we can all make an effort to refrain from nonsense like this:

"He wouldn"t marry her and so she killed herself. Oldest story in the book."
- Posted by tuckerndfw [quoted from memory]

This guy has the legal presumption of innocence, but if he killed her, and frustrated white males manage to get him off, and he kills again, the next victims" blood will be on their hands.

[meinnv]

Also, "in conclusion" means I am through with my end of the debate, unless I needed to state that as well.

Posted by meinnv at 12:49 AM : Jan 16, 2008

With whom are you debating?

The way you end a debate or discussion is you stop replying. . .

Posted by tuckerndfw at 12:54 AM : Jan 16, 2008

Excuse my politeness then.....

I didn''t want to ignore someone who was addressing me.

If you reply to me, and address me, it is only common courtesy to reply--if you were not debating me, why address me then?

I didn''t want to be considered rude.

(no reply to this comment is needed, implied or expected).