( CNN ) -- The suspect in the death of a 20-year-old pregnant Marine will be returned to North Carolina to face charges in her slaying , a Mexican judge ruled Thursday , according to North Carolina authorities . U.S. Marine Cpl . Cesar Laurean was arrested in Mexico in April . U.S. Marine Cpl . Cesar Laurean , 21 , who was arrested in Mexico in April , could be returned to Onslow County , North Carolina , within a week , the county sheriff 's office said in a statement issued Thursday . Federal authorities will handle his transportation to the North Carolina jail . Laurean has been indicted on first-degree murder and other charges in the death of Marine Lance Cpl . Maria Lauterbach . Her charred body and that of her fetus were found beneath a fire pit in Laurean 's backyard near Camp Lejeune , where both were stationed , in January , a month after she was last seen . Prosecutors allege that Laurean killed Lauterbach on December 14 and used her ATM card 10 days later before fleeing to Mexico to avoid prosecution . Laurean was arrested in April in San Juan Vina , in the Mexican state of Michoacan . Because he holds citizenship in the United States and Mexico , he could not be immediately deported and had to go through the extradition process , authorities said . Asked by a Mexican reporter at the time of his arrest whether he killed Lauterbach , Laurean said , `` I loved her . '' As part of the effort to apprehend Laurean , authorities seized a computer belonging to his sister-in-law that Laurean 's wife , Christina , was using to communicate with him , a law enforcement official had said . If convicted , Onslow County prosecutors said , Laurean would face a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole . Mexico 's extradition policy prohibits U.S. authorities from seeking the death penalty against fugitives it hands over . Authorities found Lauterbach 's body after Christina Laurean produced a note her husband had written claiming that the 20-year-old woman slit her own throat during an argument , according to officials . Although a gaping 4-inch wound was found on the left side of Lauterbach 's neck , autopsy results indicate that the wound itself would not have been fatal . Prosecutors have said there was no evidence that Christina Laurean was involved in or aware of Lauterbach 's slaying before she gave the note to authorities . Lauterbach had accused Laurean of raping her , and it is unclear whether he was the father of her fetus , although her relatives have said they believe him to be . He had denied the rape allegation and said he had had no sexual contact with her . Mary Lauterbach , the young woman 's mother , has said she 's unconvinced that the Marine Corps took her daughter 's rape allegation and other allegations of `` harassment '' seriously . Her daughter 's car was keyed , she said , and she was assaulted . `` Those particular actions should have been taken much more seriously because the Marines were aware of them , '' she said Friday . In a statement issued after her death , the Marine Corps said Laurean 's denial `` was believed to be significant evidence . ''
Cpl . Cesar Laurean is suspected in death of pregnant Lance Cpl . Maria Lauterbach . Laurean was arrested in Mexico in April . He could be back in North Carolina within a week , sheriff 's office said . Score: 6