Found Deceased FL - Madeline Soto, 13, Missing Child Alert, 13500 blk Town Loop Blvd, Orlando, 26 Feb 2024 *arrest* #5

[photographer4]

I watched the 'press release' on WFLA Now, with JB Biunno. He did a phenomenal job at addressing the rumors and accusations leveled at JS and why it's inappropriate and premature. He was very compassionate and expressed the reasons why all the insinuations are so damaging, and I for one appreciated it very much. As for the PD statement, it didn't at all provide anything I had hoped to hear, and I think the reason they even did it was because so many people are demanding that they say something at all. IMO, I'm thinking that there is a toxicology report that is being done to determine COD because there were no obvious signs on her physical body. Those reports take some time to come back because the have to test for various things. I safely assume blood was drawn and is in a lab right now. Also, I do not at all believe anyone else was involved, other than the creeps/pedos that were also on those CP sites sharing pics and videos with him and vice versa. That in itself is going to be a massive investigation, which will require a very, very thorough process...and time. They said no one is ruled out yet at this point, but that is standard procedure to cover all angles but that doesn't mean that JS or her family is involved. They are all cooperating. SS is the only one who apparently isn't. On YouTube there are a lot of videos that have been posting since the press release stating that JS is being investigated and is a suspect, which is just not factual true knowledge. As JB stated, JS is a mother who just lost her daughter in a horrific, cruel, painful and devastating way, and all the accusations are just wrong at this stage. I for one do not at all expect her to come forward to 'explain herself' to any of us, she owes no one that, except the investigators piecing this all together. She is in the worst hell ever and is grieving, and doesn't need to placate us. Send her healing energy, so she can find the strength to come forward and tell her side of the story....when SHE is ready.

I agree her life is absolutely hell. And I don’t know how one would ever reconcile this horrific abuse and the subsequent death of their child. And while she owes us nothing, I do not believe there is anything she could say that would explain any of this to me. I don’t think there’s anything she could say to make me think she should be absolved of any and all responsibility here. Even if she had no idea this was happening — she still made the adult decisions for her and her daughter and she brought that monster into Madeline’s life.

At this point I hope she gets whatever help she needs but I don’t think there is any / enough help in the world to make her life ok again whether she knew or not.

 

[photographer4]

And gaslighted her. Made her think she was the bad one for even thinking it or asking.
JMO and experience from being gaslit when questioning things that did not add up (not about SA but same situation with suspicion and confrontation). Gaslighters can be extremely good.

I do believe he manipulated her. I do. But I also refuse to believe that she was so taken in that she couldn’t spot the danger to herself if not to her daughter. And it’s one sided. We don’t know what she was like in her relationship with him. She stated she has bipolar and depression. I wonder if she was also a bit toxic herself? We don’t know if she was stable or not or what unstable periods may have looked like. Was she threatening suicide if he left? Did she threaten to harm him or Madeline?

I just think honestly? Mum should have noticed some flags and as soon as she did it was time to bounce with her kid. Or, better yet, imagine if Madeline had never even met SS or any of mum’s partners (remember she was married 2015-2017). Seems like she moved Ss into their lives (not necessarily their home because I don’t know when that happened) awfully quickly given police have charged him for offences as early as June 2019. MOO.

 

[photographer4]

I should have been more clearer, I meant if she had been drugged with the same medication as MS, if of course, she was drugged.

If she was drugged with anything other than or in an amount not prescribed to her by a doctor then police will have to sort out: what it was, where it came from, who gave it to her, when and where these things happened. Or how she accessed it if they think she did it to herself.

I imagine if she was drugged then their investigation may then include others: perhaps a pharmacist or a doctor or street dealers if they can be ascertained and found.

 

[photographer4]

I have also been a true crime obsessive since I could read a newspaper, yet I feel the precise wording makes a difference. An interview is a specific conversation that is recorded. If the Chief's 'an interview' does mean AFTER the arrest and not including any that occurred BEFORE, I feel that makes some sense. They could possibly have been talking daily with JS, but as official interviews go, maybe it was just the one.
She is apparently cooperating. If they wanted more interviews and she refused, would they say she was cooperating?
And, of course, there is the chance that she has had a complete mental break because I know if it was me, I would be in the biggest mental breakdown of my entire life.

Or does it maybe mean she spoke to them once and had also spoken previously with original investigative team who handled the start of the missing person case up to when they told us they handed it to Kissimmee (presser march 1).

 

[Pruddennce]

I do believe he manipulated her. I do. But I also refuse to believe that she was so taken in that she couldn’t spot the danger to herself if not to her daughter. And it’s one sided. We don’t know what she was like in her relationship with him. She stated she has bipolar and depression. I wonder if she was also a bit toxic herself? We don’t know if she was stable or not or what unstable periods may have looked like. Was she threatening suicide if he left? Did she threaten to harm him or Madeline?

I just think honestly? Mum should have noticed some flags and as soon as she did it was time to bounce with her kid. Or, better yet, imagine if Madeline had never even met SS or any of mum’s partners (remember she was married 2015-2017). Seems like she moved Ss into their lives (not necessarily their home because I don’t know when that happened) awfully quickly given police have charged him for offences as early as June 2019. MOO.

I wonder who did the laundry? surely there were signs. Ive wondered and posted before, where was Madeline in her puberty stage? did she start her monthly yet? was she educated at an age appropriate level regarding that? of course, not having a monthly does not preclude getting pregnant. I just think about what, if any, guidance she had regarding her body once she turned, lets say, on the older scale, 10-11-12. younger than that, a watchful eye would be required, one would think.

the only known fact right now is: Madeline was being sexually abused for years. and now she has lost her life.

 

[ttjo]

IA. What a let down. This was one of those “this could have been an email” moments.

yes a letdown for sure, sort of like thinking you're going out to see a parade and all you got to see was an old clunker with tin cans dragging behind it.

 

[Forest_Wood]

Around 7:30

"Mother HAS cooperated; she did give us an interview."

Not Mother IS cooperating.

But the next sentence:

"No one is not cooperating except for Sterns."
So IDK. Very confusing and inexact language.

This officer was not very good at communicating in this news conference and I'm kind of surprised she is the chief. She said "you know" a lot as a figure of speech and frequently stumbled over her words as she was reading. <modsnip - no need to comment on appearance> There was somehow a disconnect here imo and no new information to speak of. MOO.

 

[Forest_Wood]

They said no one is ruled out yet at this point, but that is standard procedure to cover all angles but that doesn't mean that JS or her family is involved.

It doesn't mean that JS or her family are NOT involved either.

Officer: During an investigation such as this one, we gather additional information from individuals close to the deceased. Each person interviewed is treated as involved until proven otherwise. This is a standard protocol to ensure all the facts are uncovered. (2:05)

Reporter: Is the mother a suspect or a person of interest in this investigation and also with the videos you uncovered is there any evidence of the mother's involvement in any of these videos? (4:03)

Officer: So, everyone that was close to Madeline is considered suspect until we have proven otherwise.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

But Holland stressed the importance of not rushing detectives in their “meticulous” investigation.

She said detectives have been “relentless” in investigating what has proven to be a “complex” case.

“Our questions are being answered,” Holland said. “Slowly but surely.”

“Mr. Sterns is not going anywhere,” Holland said Thursday. “He’s in jail, and he’s going to be there for a while.”

Madeline Soto: Kissimmee police chief says detectives can’t be rushed in their investigation

Kissimmee police Chief Betty Holland held a news conference Thursday afternoon to discuss her agency’s investigation into the death of 13-year-old Madeline Soto -- almost one month after her initial disappearance.

www.wftv.com

 

[Beekarina]

I can’t really see a predator of his nature being willing to share.

His own friends calling in said SS & JS were into "kinky" stuff. Thankfully they did not elaborate, so who knows what this means, but whatever it was the friend(s) mentioning it theorized this was the "glue" holding SS & JS together, or at least what attracted them to one another.

Now there is clearly a world of difference between anything consenting adults do in an adult relationship and the horror of SS abuse of MS, however as I said previously, SS friends knew he liked younger women, abused drugs and had other strange, to put things mildly, habits. I understand people want to think of JS as a nice mom and everything, but again, she was with SS for 6-8 years, and lived with him. Personally, I have a VERY hard time thinking she had no idea of who he really was, what he liked, what he was "into". Yes, she has bipolar, but she is a college graduate and held a job. She is not a low functioning individual. All of this "he gaslit her" ..."poor JS never knew anything because SS was such a mastermind"...it just seems so absurd. At minimum, she knew his "kinks", IMO.

 

[Beekarina]

Yes, it was the GH interview with the guy who played games and smoked pot with him, the most recent friend he had that called in. I just forgot his name. And yes, he has 2 boys and said that they were never harmed but it still freaked him out. He said there was never a time when SS was alone with them. Somewhere in the interview he talks about the Lunesta. When I heard him say that, I instantly wondered about whether or not SS had been giving it to JS or Maddie. I thought that when Jenn gave one of the initial interviews, her pupils seemed dilated and her behavior seemed under an influence and that was before I heard the reference to Lunesta. Just my observation though, since no toxicology report is out yet on Maddie.

Her expressions are odd in the interview. She may have been given some meds by her own physician to help calm her down too, and also may have already had something given her own mental health. Plus, I don't think it is a huge stretch to consider she my also use other drugs knowing SS did.

Thinking how many people have theorized LE sent this news crew to do a spontaneous interview, and they may have shown up when SS and JS were both a bit baked. I know one of the GH callers said he was certain SS had been smoking pot based on his experience of smoking with SS and how he looked/mannerisms--something specific to the corners of SS eyes, if I remember correctly.

 

[Skigh]

This officer was not very good at communicating in this news conference and I'm kind of surprised she is the chief. She said "you know" a lot as a figure of speech and frequently stumbled over her words as she was reading. <modsnip - no need to comment about appearance> There was somehow a disconnect here imo and no new information to speak of. MOO.

I noticed that too,which made me wonder if she had only very recently been given the script to read. Maybe there were last minute changes to what information was given in the press conference .

 

[shetalksinstereo]

Around 7:30

"Mother HAS cooperated; she did give us an interview."

Not Mother IS cooperating.

But the next sentence:

"No one is not cooperating except for Sterns."

So IDK. Very confusing and inexact language.

Yeah, weird to use the double negative in a planned briefing. That's something usually done off the cuff or caught off guard.

 

[CuriousCricket]

And gaslighted her. Made her think she was the bad one for even thinking it or asking.
JMO and experience from being gaslit when questioning things that did not add up (not about SA but same situation with suspicion and confrontation). Gaslighters can be extremely good.

Gaslighters are excellent at what they do. Been doing it all their lives. So they know how to pick unsure victims who doubt themselves and will accept the evil person is good and how horrible such a thought could even enter the gaslightee's head. "So hurt, so damaged that 's what you think of me!" tears, sad eyes, anger. Yep, if JS did ask, he blamed her for even thinking such a thing.

 

[CTPDMom]

I felt the police chief looked upset, at least in the beginning to middle of what we watched. This could be nerves if she's not frequently giving this type of update, at least not with this level of broader interest, but something I observed and found interesting. It's understandable, just something I picked up on.

I did not notice this with her in other videos.

It's also possible she's upset simply because she's a human being like the rest of us, and a 13 year old who was SA'd and is now dead is an upsetting occurrence! Cops aren't immune to feelings.

IMO, the comments by the chief regarding, 'talking to your children', reporting abuse and mentioning resources, etc., then says, "PEOPLE CAN REPORT SUSPICION TOO"....I kind of felt there were family members or friends who suspected something and revealed that to LE when interviewed.

Sadly, though, very often when 'suspicion' is reported it's not given the proper attention.

 

[Megnut]

I can give her a pass for her initial interview. Perhaps she'd been manipulated herself. Over-served so she'd stay asleep. Tricked into believing a narrative of the morning.

We don't know whether or when or how often, if she may have sensed something was not right with SS, if she asked MS herself, believing MS would tell her if it was, and completely misunderstanding the degree of fear, secrecy and control SS held over MS. Children don't tell because sometimes they're afraid to tell.

This is the part I can give her: in thst moment of the interview, as long as MS was dropped off at the church, she's still alive. If that didn't happen, the whole world collapses and that might take some time to process. Denial can be merciful. Dangerous but merciful.

She's had time. I hope she'll choose right now to stand up for, stand in for MS and tell LE absolutely everything she knows, including what she maybe didn't know then but has dawned ugly since.

MS deserves that.

JMO

 

[CuriousCricket]

My body is tensing up just thinking about it. You end up hating yourself for even thinking it.

Now imagine you'd broken up with the sorry so-and-so, but allowed yourself to be talked into allowing him back. Then the child disappears and is murdered. He's arrested immediately so there's no opportunity to kill him, and you learn the horrors he's inflicted on your child.

It will be years before there's a court date.

I can't begin to imagine. Any parent would need help to recover. Massive amounts of help.

Perhaps she is hospitalized somewhere. I hope there's lots of sunshine and water, rainbows, unicorns and Irish leprechauns piped in 24/7.

As much as I hate to think it, I suspect LE still thinks she may be involved. Even as I know that mothers are often involved, still my brain doesn't want to go there.

I believe Police Chief Holland and the unit are still wondering and that's the reason for what appeared to be the "nothing burger" of a press conference.

Poor Chief Holland. Imagine drawing a case like this your first year in office. . . Anyway, the PC was carefully scripted and she read it word-for-word. At one point, she started a sentence wrong, corrected herself and went back and read the script.

The focus was on the interviews with people involved with Madeline Soto and their importance. Everyone is cooperating, she said, except SS. But as pointed out here, JS has provided "an interview" and the importance of continuing to gather information and continuing to talk was stressed.

For SS's benefit, here's the signal he's being talked about and he needs to be presenting what he knows to protect himself. He's been in a pressure cooker a few weeks, so maybe he's ready to explode.

And for the close family, who always says, "I've already told that detective over there everything I know," on every TV show, it's a way to say, "We know you think you have, but we know we need to drill down closer and we NEED more than one interview."

I got the distinct impression the PC was to try to reach people who have lawyered up and are no longer talking in order to tell them how vital it is for the police to be able to talk to them.

It should be a cooperative effort, but doesn't sound as though it is.

 

[Megnut]

I got the distinct impression the PC was to try to reach people who have lawyered up and are no longer talking in order to tell them how vital it is for the police to be able to talk to them.

 RSBM

Excellent point!

If they have been unable to reach a person by phone or in person, perhaps they used the presser to send that carefully crafted invitation.

I too hope it works!

 

[Universecalling]

That's a standard statement that I've seen in countless cases involving people who eventually do go on to be charged. The telling thing is that they said everyone, when in reality, there's only one person who could reasonably be in legal jeopardy here. We know they are looking at her, and we know the evidence shows she committed a crime by lying to law enforcement about when she last saw her daughter. There's no way they'd pull the trigger on those charges until they were sure that's all they had, or until they were ready to move on whatever else there is.

For the record, I doubt she helped kill her daughter, but I'd bet the farm on her helping after the fact.

You make such a great point.
One thing that has been very subtly nagging at me was the moment during his transfer from OC to Osceola.
The reporter was shouting multi question sequence at SS. There was no reaction until this one particular moment where we was at a door step and he shook his head. It felt involuntary and reactionary.
That moment felt more telling than most other ones. Made me wonder if he covered for her because of mutual destruction aspect of this awful, awful situation.

 

[photoprose1122]

His own friends calling in said SS & JS were into "kinky" stuff. Thankfully they did not elaborate, so who knows what this means, but whatever it was the friend(s) mentioning it theorized this was the "glue" holding SS & JS together, or at least what attracted them to one another.

Now there is clearly a world of difference between anything consenting adults do in an adult relationship and the horror of SS abuse of MS, however as I said previously, SS friends knew he liked younger women, abused drugs and had other strange, to put things mildly, habits. I understand people want to think of JS as a nice mom and everything, but again, she was with SS for 6-8 years, and lived with him. Personally, I have a VERY hard time thinking she had no idea of who he really was, what he liked, what he was "into". Yes, she has bipolar, but she is a college graduate and held a job. She is not a low functioning individual. All of this "he gaslit her" ..."poor JS never knew anything because SS was such a mastermind"...it just seems so absurd. At minimum, she knew his "kinks", IMO.

A little confused - my comment was in response to someone speculating SS might have “loaned” her to a friend to abuse. I was not referring to JS or her involvement at all.