JACKSONVILLE - On the run in Mexico, Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean tried to stay a step ahead of the law, skipping around to Internet cafes in a desperate attempt to contact relatives using the MySpace social networking Web site.

The fugitive, accused of murder in the death of a pregnant Marine late last year, was careful to use different cafes each time he sent a message to his wife, Onslow District Attorney Dewey Hudson said Friday. Authorities seized a computer and followed the trail of the long-distance conversation to narrow the search for Laurean. He was caught late Thursday in the small town of Tacambaro after a three-month manhunt.

Police in Mexico were carrying out an anti-kidnapping operation and stopped Laurean because they thought he looked suspicious wandering the streets, the Associated Press reported. He was quickly identified, in part because of his distinctive tattoos.

At a news conference, investigators said Laurean had repeatedly asked relatives for assistance, but they did not provide any.

"Communicating with a fugitive is not against the law," said District Attorney Dewey Hudson, state prosecutor in Onslow County.

The criminal case now focuses on bringing him back to North Carolina to stand trial in the death of Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach of Ohio. The process could take from 60 days to a couple of years, depending on whether Laurean fights extradition from Mexico, Hudson said.

If convicted of first-degree murder, Laurean could be sentenced to life without parole. Hudson agreed not to seek the death penalty to obtain Mexico's assistance in the case.

"Frankly, I'm disappointed he was caught in Mexico," Hudson said.

'Important step'

Lauterbach's family expressed some measure of relief that Laurean was in custody.

"It doesn't bring Maria back. Nothing can replace the pain of that loss," Lauterbach's mother, Mary, said in a statement released Friday, The Associated Press reported. "At the same time, we know that Maria would want justice to be done in this case and we know that this is an important step in that process."

Bearded and thin, Laurean told authorities in Mexico he had slept in fields and picked fruit to survive, the AP reported. When he was caught, he had 10 pesos -- about $1 -- in his pocket.

Asked whether he wanted to say anything, Laurean answered, "Proof," but wouldn't explain, the AP reported. Asked what he would do next, he replied, "Do I have a choice?.. I don't know."

On Friday, investigators in North Carolina provided little information about Laurean's capture, but they emphasized that family members were not culpable in his flight. Capt. Rick Strickland of the Onslow County Sheriff's Office said Christina Laurean has been a cooperating witness since Laurean disappeared Jan. 11.

Christopher Welch of Jacksonville, Christina Laurean's attorney, joined federal, state and local officials at the news conference and reiterated that his client was not a suspect. He said she did not participate in the killing, did not conceal it and did not help her husband flee.

He said Marine Corps officials had ordered her not to talk about the case. "She cannot tell what she knows," he said. "She cannot tell her side of the story."

Neighbors in the Half Moon community near Jacksonville said Christina Laurean moved in February from the small one-story home where investigators said Lauterbach was bludgeoned to death. The badly burned bodies of Lauterbach and her fetus were recovered from a fire pit in the backyard in January.

Investigators said Cesar Laurean left a note in which he said Lauterbach, who had accused him of rape, came to the house and killed herself by slitting her throat. He said in the note that he buried the body.

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