Suspect In Bethesda Woman's 2010 Murder Awaiting Extradition In Mexico

BETHESDA, MD — A man suspected in the 2010 murder of a Bethesda woman has been arrested in Mexico and charged in connection with her murder after 12 years on the run, according to the Montgomery County Police Department.

Jorge Rueda Landeros, who lived in Northern Virginia prior to fleeing, was arrested on Dec. 13 in Guadalajara, Mexico, police said Friday.

On Oct. 25, 2010, Sue Marcum was found dead in her Bethesda home. In their investigation, Montgomery County police detectives determined that Landeros had a personal and financial relationship with Marcum and was involved in her murder.

Following Marcum’s killing, Landeros fled to Mexico or Central America, according to police.

Marcum, an accounting professor at American University in Washington, D.C., was impressed with Landeros’ intelligence and had entered into a relationship with him, friends told CNN. Landeros had worked as a stockbroker and was teaching Spanish, practicing yoga and meditation.

After Marcum was found dead in her Bethesda home on Oct. 25, 2010, police began an investigation. Police were able to obtain a sample of Landeros’ DNA. It tested as a match with DNA found at the crime scene, police said.

In 2011, Landeros, who was born in Mexico, was charged with Marcum’s murder and a warrant was issued for his arrest. In a series of interviews by telephone from Mexico with the Washington Post in 2011, though, Landeros denied that he killed Marcum.

Earlier this month, the FBI’s Baltimore Field Office received information that Landeros was likely living in Guadalajara, Jalisco. On Dec. 13, an operation was coordinated with federal and local police in Mexico to apprehend Landeros, where he was taken into custody without incident.

Landeros is currently awaiting extradition in Mexico City, where his extradition process was initiated. Once the extradition process is finalized, Mexican officials will coordinate with the FBI on extraditing him back to the United States, police said.