JACKSONVILLE, N.C. – A North Carolina sheriff said a Marine held in Mexico on a charge of murdering a pregnant colleague will be treated as well as other inmates in the county jail when he is returned to the United State for trial.
But it still isn't known when Cpl. Cesar Laurean, 21, will be returned to Onslow County to face a charge of first-degree murder in the death of Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach.
Lauterbach, 20, of Vandalia, Ohio, was found with remains of her unborn child in January in a shallow grave in Laurean's back yard.
Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown is preparing for the prisoner's return. Brown said Laurean will get the same humane treatment as other inmates and "will not be singled out," The Daily News of Jacksonville reported Monday.
FBI spokesman Newsom Summerlin said Laurean currently is being held in Mexico and won't discuss movement of prisoners.
Laurean fled Onslow County on Jan. 11 and was arrested in Mexico in April. His extradition was approved last week by a Mexican judge.
"Laurean will not be singled out; he will receive the same humane treatment all the inmates in the jail do," Brown said. "Humans are humans; if you mistreat them for any reason you are not who you are supposed to be."
District Attorney Dewey Hudson said he is confident the sheriff will take care of Laurean.
"We do not want another inmate trying to capture a moment of fame by assaulting Laurean," Hudson said.
The district attorney said Laurean's treatment is important because he doesn't want anything to happen that might impede future prisoner returns from Mexico.
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