Posted on 01/11/2008 9:43:08 AM PST by Pyro7480
January 11, 2008)--Authorities in North Carolina said late Friday morning pregnant Marine Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach is dead.
They said she’s buried in a shallow grave, for which investigators are now searching.
They identified the suspect in the case as a Marine officer whom she accused of sexually assaulting her.
Police earlier were planning to interview a man who lived with her and said he would answer questions that "will shed a lot of light on the case."
Authorities said again Friday Marine Sgt. Daniel Durham isn't a suspect, but police believe he's the last person to speak with the Marine.
She disappeared Dec. 14 ahead of her expected testimony in a military investigation into her claim a senior officer had sexually assaulted her.
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.
Lauterbach was eight months pregnant when she disappeared.
***The two then went to a bus station where he helped her buy a ticket to El Paso, Texas***
He helped her buy a ticket - with her own money? How helpful was that?
The missus has been trying to make up an exculpatory story that fits with evidence & time-lines that have been made public.
Pure nonsense - but I’m sure the Sheriff is on to her game!
I FReepmailed a version of this scenario - but this is my final answer.
Maria & Cesar began a casual, consensual sexual romp. Maria discovered she was pregnant & Cesar demanded that she have an abortion or it would wreck 2 careers and one marriage. He pressured her every day to obtain an abortion. Maria was insulted & vengeful. To stop his abortion pressure and avoid contact with him, she accused him of rape. She didn’t stop to think that the combination of rape charges & giving birth to his unwanted child would tip him over the edge from an adulterer to a murderer.
After months of questions, counseling, MPOs and no communication or contact with Cesar, Maria was contemplating dropping the rape charges and moving on with her life, her child and terminating her military career. She contacted Cesar for a meeting, but failed to tell him why.
Cesar assumed she had DNA evidence and was going to threaten him with child support or had DNA evidence to successfully pursue the rape charges.
NOTE: This is when, IMO, he planned to kill her.
He invited her to his house while his wife would be out - Maria drew $700 out of her ATM on Dec. 14th and drove to Cesar’s house. Cesar ambushed her with a tire iron in the garage...she tried to get away, begging for her life & her baby’s life. But scared and enraged he killed her.
Christina came home unexpectedly and witnessed the murder scene. She was in shock as Cesar tearfully confessed to his wife that Maria Lauterbach was pregnant with his child, would not get an abortion - & that he would be responsible for child support...and that he faced unfounded rape charges.
Christina accepted Cesar’s rationale that Maria Lauterbach could not be allowed to give birth to a viable child and continue to ruin their lives for the rest of their lives.
The two then hatched a plan to make it look as if Lauterbach had just run away. Christina dressed in her own Marine uniform and purchased a ticket for Texas (for no particular reason) They had Maria’s house & car keys - and wrote a *good-bye* note to delay a missing persons’ report. They tossed her cell-phone and left her car at the bus station.
Thereafter the Laureans dug a fire-pit and on three separate occasions attempted to cremate Maria’s body. Additionally, they purchased paint supplies to remove evidence at the crime scene(s).
Final draft.
BREAKING NEWS: Affidavit Shows Statement From Laurean's Wife
Pretty good!
Wow - that’s impressive and probably not far from the truth.
Something like he killed Maria in the garage and then Christine killed him in the living room?
Haven’t heard this. I hope this is not the case. But from what we know so far anything’s possible.
The article lists different facts (can we really call them facts when they seem to change so much??) from what we’ve seen and read so far. If wifey didn’t see him since the 11th, then what’s with the going to the bus station on the 14th or 15th about? Strange.
I agree. Most home improvement projects like that are done in the spring/summer months. Painting now would only be done on for “have to” reasons. If my husband wanted to paint now, I’m wondering why. We’re a long way from this story being told.
Until the facts are known we can’t be sure but I’m leaning heavily toward premeditated.
Sounds entirely plausible.
We need to make sure that the MONTH is shown, not just the day.
i.e.
Going to the bus station was December 15th
Wife (claims) she last saw husband January 11th.
Yow, you are quite right, somehow I missed the month part, noticing only the date. Thank you!
This is starting sound like a game of Clue—
The Wife
In the Living Room
With the Tire Iron
In the alternate universe - let’s consider the betrayed wife.
She reportedly learned about the rape charge in July ‘07 and most certainly did her own research. She had to know that Maria was pregnant, beautiful and a threat to her husband’s career.
Where did the wife’s pregnancy rumor originate? Most men don’t make that stuff up - that is a woman’s lie. So we might assume that Christina told Cesar she also was pregnant - that she was as needy as Marine Maria Lauterbach. He just passed the word to his buddies.
If Christina was desperate to hold on to her man and destroy the competition - what tactic did she use? Did she call Maria and invite her over to control the situation? Did she plan on talking Maria out of filing rape charges? Did she offer to adopt Maria’s baby and give her the pros & cons? Visitation vs. child custody?
Did they meet on Dec 14th and all hell broke loose?
What if the poor schmuk Cesar walked in on a violent, fatal attack on Maria? What possible alibi does he have? His pregnant wife has just killed his pregnant ex-gal pal in self-defense? Who would think of a suicide excuse? IMO that sounds like a woman’s thinking.
I believe Cesar Laurean, a personnel clerk, was not the bossiest, brightest bulb in the Laurean home. The person who appears to have taken charge, purchased the bus ticket, dropped the car at the bus station etc., etc., I think the Take Charge wife - said “run Cesar, run” and he did. Leaving her to fashion all self-serving stories and alibis.
He may be dead.
Final alternative draft.
Both your scenarios make sense to me. The sheriff kept alluding to “twists” in the story, and I don’t think the public has heard them all, maybe not even half of them.
Considered that to be a distinct possibility myself.
Weapon was a crowbar, not a tire iron. The reason I mention it is that a tire iron would usually be in a vehicle or possibly in a garage. A crowbar would be in or near a tool box which could be anywhere - garage, workshop, household closet/cabinet.
I’ve had a crowbar on my fireplace on its way from an indoor project to my workshop - but never had a tire iron in the house.
Just adding food for thought...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.