Greek officials offer clue on dead Marine's missing heart

Update to this story Family says Embassy Marine's heart removed by Greece Officials

Greek officials offer clue on dead Marine's missing heart
The Philadelphia Inquirer
By Jeremy Roebuck
Published: December 12, 2013

COATESVILLE, Pa. — The missing heart of a dead Marine sergeant from Chester County was removed during an autopsy last year for toxicology testing, Greek consular officials said Wednesday.

But that explanation - offered without comment on where the organ is now - only begins to answer the questions raised by the Marine's parents in their lawsuit, filed last week in federal court in Philadelphia.

On Wednesday, Craig and Beverly LaLoup of Coatesville, parents of Sgt. Brian LaLoup, added the Greek government and the Athens hospital that conducted the autopsy to the list of defendants in their suit, which previously included the U.S. Department of Defense and the Navy.

Brian LaLoup, 21, had been stationed at the U.S. Embassy in Athens. It was there, after a night of drinking, that he fatally shot himself in the head on Aug. 12, 2012. His parents allege that Greek medical examiners removed his heart in an illegal procedure.

U.S. military officials failed to notify the parents about the missing organ until after they had buried their son, the LaLoups claim.
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