Trial begins in 2010 death of AU professor; defendant spent 12 years on FBI ‘Most Wanted List’ living in Mexico
Jury selection begins Monday in the trial of Jorge Rueda Landeros nearly years after the death of American University professor Sue Ann Marcum who had been beaten and asphyxiated in her Bethesda Maryland home Landeros was indicted in August for the first-degree murder of Marcum who was uncovered in her home on Massachusetts Avenue less than a half-mile west of the D C boundary on Oct Related stories DNA jail calls financial records Maryland prosecutors make occurrence in murder of AU professor Riverdale family searching for answers after mom wife hit and killed while biking Former FBI agent sentenced to years for tattoo shop rapes in Montgomery County Montgomery County prosecutors have stated Landeros who had dual citizenship fled to Mexico after Marcum s death He spent a dozen years on the FBI s The greater part Demanded List before he was arrested in Guadalajara Mexico in December and extradited to the U S Police and prosecutors haven t specified whether Marcum and Landeros had a romantic relationship but Landeros was the sole beneficiary of a life insurance on Marcum In addition according to the FBI Marcum had made the initial contribution of a joint stake account she shared with Landeros and had expressed concern about how he was managing the funds A form in Marcum s home from listed proceeds of more than million from the fund which investigators maintained to be very strange given her occupation as a university professor according to charging documents Once the jury has been selected the trial is expected to take about a week If convicted Landeros could face life in prison with no chance of parole Defense Landeros maintains innocence Landeros society defenders have revealed the scene of Marcum s killing initially bore signs of a robbery according to charging documents in the development A rear window appeared to have been pried open and the house was partially ransacked However several expensive items were left behind and investigators commented evidence of a struggle indicated Marcum possibly knew her attacker The defense explained several electronic items of value were stacked in the home and the facts are consistent with the modus operandi in approximately to home burglaries that occurred in the Northwest quadrant of D C and in Bethesda within several months of Marcum s death Despite these facts the state still alleges that Mr Landeros killed Ms Marcum according to last week s defense motion In new motions masses defenders Meghan Brennan and Tatiana David petitioned the judge to exclude any suggestion from prosecutors that Landeros fled to Mexico to avoid being prosecuted in Marcum s death And they argued that prosecutors should not be allowed to mention that Landeros changed his name because it would suggest he had something to hide Last week the judge ruled that all of the facts about Landeros time in Mexico after Marcum s death are admissible although prosecutors can t use the words flight in opening statements The state is prohibited from introducing any evidence about the name Landeros was using when he was apprehended The defense mentioned it will challenge the prosecutorial argument that by not making himself available to Maryland executives Landeros was demonstrating consciousness of guilt There are a number of reasons why Mr Landeros would avoid turning himself in to the agents including prospective Internal Revenue Function penalties that exist comprehensively independent of the murder of Sue Marcum the defense wrote Source
