Found Deceased FL - Madeline Soto, 13, Missing Child Alert, 13500 blk Town Loop Blvd, Orlando, 26 Feb 2024 *arrest* #2

[ttjo]

Did LE ever mention the video from the church? I only remember that mom said her sister was told about the video, and I don't really trust that as a reliable source. I'm too exhausted to go back and reread all the articles to see if LE ever publicly talked about the video, so hoping someone can give me the answer. Thanks, in advance.

this is the clip where LE talks about the embarrassment of the vehicle, and the church video being grainy

 

[ttjo]

Did LE ever mention the video from the church? I only remember that mom said her sister was told about the video, and I don't really trust that as a reliable source. I'm too exhausted to go back and reread all the articles to see if LE ever publicly talked about the video, so hoping someone can give me the answer. Thanks, in advance.

ad heres the one where LE says " our detectives have determined ..."

 

[photographer4]

LE has said she was never dropped off that day. (They must have a video from the church to prove that) One reason I heard for dropping her off at the church was she was embarrassed by SS car ( but I cannot remember who said that or where I read/watched that ) In one of the interviews the mom just said Maddi wanted to walk but didn't say why.

Well, the warrant says he dropped at the church lot for 8:40am.

So timeline:
7:35am he’s dumping her things in dumpster.
Leaves then returns at 8:19 and police say they believe she was already dead (she was apparently visible on the video).

We don’t know when he arrived to pick her up (warrant: mom says he picked her up to take to school. Warrant doesn’t say what time).

We don’t know where he was before 7:35 or to 8:19am.

Madeline Soto: Stephan Sterns waives first appearance day after teen's body found in Osceola County | FOX 35 Orlando

Stephan Sterns was a no-show for his first appearance in Osceola County court on Saturday. His lawyer didn't want the judge reading out the charges.

www.fox35orlando.com

(Shows the times police gave at presser last friday).

Did he go to the parking lot and make sure he appeared there on their grainy video to alibi himself?? Could he have even made it by 8:40 to the parking lot? Oh man. Did he have her body in his car and go to the parking lot just to appear on cam?

 

[ttjo]

Well, the warrant says he dropped at the church lot for 8:40am.

So timeline:
7:35am he’s dumping her things in dumpster.
Leaves then returns at 8:40 and police say they believe she was already dead (she was apparently visible on the video).

We don’t know when he arrived to pick her up (warrant: mom says he picked her up to take to school. Warrant doesn’t say what time).

We don’t know where he was before 7:35 or to 8:19am.

Madeline Soto: Stephan Sterns waives first appearance day after teen's body found in Osceola County | FOX 35 Orlando

Stephan Sterns was a no-show for his first appearance in Osceola County court on Saturday. His lawyer didn't want the judge reading out the charges.

www.fox35orlando.com

(Shows the times police gave at presser last friday).

Did he go to the parking lot and make sure he appeared there on their grainy video to alibi himself??

The warrant said "advised"

 

[photographer4]

The warrant said "advised" View attachment 488074

Yes. But we know it wasn’t true. Just makes me wonder - did they see his car on video at the church parking lot? Did he go there to alibi himself? It’s a deliberate statement. This was no accidental statement. He said a specific place he dropped her that wasn’t the school. Why? And again, why so early when class wasn’t til 9:30am??

 

[IzzyBlanche]

I have been following this case pretty closely and I don't think this has been answered anywhere.

Where did SS say he picked Maddie up FROM?

I thought he lived with the family, although I don't think that has been confirmed anywhere either.

 

[ttjo]

-IMO advised means that's what mom and SS told LE and about his car being at the parking lot, one can only assume, by their statement "our detectives have determined madeline was never dropped off"

 

[elliefant]

Re the previous familial child sexual assault charges. Maybe this would explain their separate living arrangements, as surely Mom would not be allowed to continue having him living under the same roof as her daughter, and she may even have been told by the authorities to discontinue the relationship completely or face losing custody of her daughter. This might explain her oddly mangled story in the interview as she would have been nervous about what she said about his involvement in their lives and about him being alone with her daughter.

Ofc Madaline and the truth should have been the priority for all of them, but were they? Not if his continued presence in their lives after his prior charges is anything to go by.

ETA : I have got the wrong end of the stick here (see MassGuy’s later post) so please ignore my ponderings!

 

[ttjo]

I have been following this case pretty closely and I don't think this has been answered anywhere.

Where did SS say he picked Maddie up FROM?

I thought he lived with the family, although I don't think that has been confirmed anywhere either.

I dont think he ever said specifically. and mom says she was picked up, that is what's so confusing. The warrant doesnt say where he came from, but if he dumped her back pack when and from where did he get that?

 

[ttjo]

Re the previous familial child sexual assault charges. Maybe this would explain their separate living arrangements, as surely Mom would not be allowed to continue having him living under the same roof as her daughter, and she may even have been told by the authorities to discontinue the relationship completely or face losing custody of her daughter. This might explain her oddly mangled story in the interview as she would have been nervous about what she said about his involvement in their lives and about him being alone with her daughter.

Ofc Madaline and the truth should have been the priority for all of them, but were they? Not if his continued presence in their lives after his prior charges is anything to go by.

That makes sense, maybe that's where the nerves came from and at the time of the interview, no-one knew about any previous history

 

[IzzyBlanche]

Yes. But we know it wasn’t true. Just makes me wonder - did they see his car on video at the church parking lot? Did he go there to alibi himself? It’s a deliberate statement. This was no accidental statement. He said a specific place he dropped her that wasn’t the school. Why? And again, why so early when class wasn’t til 9:30am??

IMO, he was never there at all and it was deliberate only in the sense that he was trying to throw LE off his own butt.

As for the timeline, all we know is what the mom and SS have said, and I wouldn't consider either of them the most reliable of sources.

I'm beginning to think that in her interviews, mom was parroting what SS told her rather than speaking from any firsthand knowledge.

 

[Pruddennce]

(Bolded by me)
Respectfully, I think any school board policy on where to drop kids off is irrelevant. How can you control where kids get dropped off? It’s not like a school is going to not let the kid in if they aren’t dropped off in the right spot.
These are middle schoolers, not kindergarteners. It’s a normal time for freedoms to be increasing which, for some kids, could mean walking or riding a bike to school on their own. The school has a little more control when it comes to being picked up but I can’t imagine being 13 and told I can’t go home after school unless they see my parents.
If school starts at 9:30, there is just no way that all of the kids are being dropped off by an adult every single morning.

I’m surprised though that there aren’t automatic notifications about absences based on some sort of virtual classroom website. Most schools these days seem to have grades, homework, attendance, etc. readily available for parents and students online.

On the day she went missing, Madeline Soto's mother said she did not learn of her daughter's absence until she went to pick her up from school at 4:30 p.m.

Now, one school board member wants the state to make a change. Julius Melendez says parents have been asking for information on the school district's policy on absences.

"For every hour to us, it may seem like nothing, but to a parent who's lost a child, every hour feels like a full day," said Melendez, an Osceola County School Board member in District 2

Parents question school policies after Madeline Soto's mother said she did not know of her absence

On the day she went missing, Madeline Soto's mother said she did not learn of her daughter's absence until she went to pick her up at 4:30 p.m.

www.wesh.com

they do have a parental/guardian portal. and yes, kids have different modes of transportation of course

for her grade group, parents/guardians are notified by 6pm via electronic call so they have a head's up to make sure the student returns with a note. it is not a student arrival protection system, its a tracking system for absences. each teacher for every class turns in a student attendance log at the end of day. late arrivals must check in first with a note for tardiness.

its a good change to bump up the time to turn in the logs, for instance,they are not present for first or second period to get an automated call. of course they might just be arriving late. or they know their child is not in school, nothing to act on. overall, it might cut down on student truancies.

if by car: by getting in the school vehicle congo line for drop off (what fun!), at least you know you are dropping your child off on the premises. her school handbook states: " Once students arrive on campus, even though they have not entered the building, they may not leave the school grounds without permission." (CCTV for sure, but Im sure there are ways around it )

the media reported she didnt call police until 8pm <---was that verified? did she call 911 or the precinct directly?

 

[photographer4]

I dont think he ever said specifically. and mom says she was picked up, that is what's so confusing. The warrant doesnt say where he came from, but if he dumped her back pack when and from where did he get that?

If he took to party on Sunday, she maybe left in his car (if she took it with her)? But why dump it at 7:35 and then RETURN with body visible in car (per LE) at 8:19? What was so important that he went back there with her in the car - possibly already dead?! How long is he there for?

We don’t hear anything else about his day tol about 1-2:30pm - he’s spotted along the area where body eventually found - may have changed a tire.

We also have not heard: where was he between 8:19-1:00pm?

Where was he after 2:30pm? What did he do? Where did he go?

At what points during the day did he talk with mom (call or text or in person)? When did it get arranged he would pick up for class and by whom (if it even happened).

I’d like police to clarify as well: did mom call police immediately after the teacher said Maddie wasn’t in school all day (she said that’s when she realized something was truly wrong per her own interview to media). Or did she not contact them til 8pm (per the warrant)? Where did she contact them from? Where was SS and what time did he originally talk to Le?

 

[MassGuy]

Re the previous familial child sexual assault charges. Maybe this would explain their separate living arrangements, as surely Mom would not be allowed to continue having him living under the same roof as her daughter, and she may even have been told by the authorities to discontinue the relationship completely or face losing custody of her daughter. This might explain her oddly mangled story in the interview as she would have been nervous about what she said about his involvement in their lives and about him being alone with her daughter.

Ofc Madaline and the truth should have been the priority for all of them, but were they? Not if his continued presence in their lives after his prior charges is anything to go by.

These charges were only filed after that tv interview took place. So during this investigation they downloaded his phone, and discovered sexual abuse material. At that point charges were filed with the offense dates beginning a couple years prior.

At the time this guy was in this family’s orbit, he had no criminal record.

We can only hope that mom had no idea that this abuse had taken place, prior to his arrest.

 

[tatertot]

Sillybilly, I too apologize for not seeing your post about medical conditions. I'd started typing my post earlier in the day and didn't read any of the newer posts, including yours, by the time I returned to my laptop to post it. I will take great care to make sure I never do that again. Sorry again!

Photographer4 (username checks out!) thanks for clarifying and adding to the information about EXIF data. You did a far better job explaining it than me.

But please please please let investigators go over all devices with fine tooth combs. I just 100% don't believe he started the offences in March of 2022 OR ended them in December of 2023.

Agreed! On his reddit account (username Sustinet), he posted to r/tamagotchi several times 10 months ago about owning a Tamagotchi Pix. It's the two-tone blue one with a cracked eggshell design in his photo titled "Current run + full collection so far." I looked it up and as the name suggests, this model of Tamagotchi has a built-in digital camera that actually takes fairly decent photos. So that needs to be looked at, along with any other toys/games that have a camera in them, such as a Nintendo DS. (Also, a much earlier photo shows another two-tone blue Pix; I'm not sure if it's the same -one with a different faceplate (he mentions changing faceplates on some of his other Tamagotchis) or a different one entirely.)

In his third post from the top on his "posts" list, he took a photo with a Intel Evo laptop in the background.

In his post to r/tamagotchi from 1 year ago, titled "I purchased a small belt for my Sumikko Friend..." the last photo shows a turquoise gadget with buttons that may be a digital pet but could also be some type of camera-equipped portable game player.

So that's two or three potential pieces of tech to look at, just for a start.

 

[IzzyBlanche]

I know I've said this before, but this case has hurt my heart more than any other in recent memory.

I can't imagine what it must be like for her classmates and teachers going back to school and there's her regular chair, empty. It must be wrenching.

All curses on those who hurt her.

 

[Curious Me]

Few interesting tidbits, take it for what it's worth. This is a phone interview with another of Stephan's friends, "Frank", who gives a bit of insight on his living situation, relationship being on/off again, being on medications, etc. Said the car Stephan was driving was his father's vehicle.

The "Frank" video. All MOO and wording here. Please listen if you're curious about SS. It sounds like a legit friendship and more recent. Extremely interesting. Well worth listening to for insight. Has known SS for about 3 yrs. Describes SS as a nerd gamer, but a normal guy. Didn't suspect this from SS. Has called LE, but they haven't called him back yet.

"Frank" got to go to SS's parent's house where SS was living in his bedroom with all kinds of game stuff etc., cluttering it up. It's a house packed with Poodles his Mom breeds. Didn't catch when, but he said SS lost a lot of weight and looked almost ill at some point. "Frank" only saw SS eat in front of him once in the three years he's known him. It was pizza. SS often just visited him. Frank has a family with young boys.

They only went out to a bar once. Some cougar tried to pick up SS, but he wasn't interested. SS shaved his beard off about four mos. ago. Hadn't heard from SS for a couple wks. before this happened.

Could be lies SS told "Frank", but supposedly JS and SS haven't been a couple for sometime. They broke up starting from the first year and it was on and off, but mainly it sounded like SS stayed in a spare room when he went back. Thinks it was more that SS bonded with JS's daughter. Frank is mystified by all the "my boyfriend", and the "we" talk. Thought they weren't a couple for quite some time, and that SS slept in a spare room even when he was living there.​

 

[ttjo]

If he took to party on Sunday, she maybe left in his car (if she took it with her)? But why dump it at 7:35 and then RETURN with body visible in car (per LE) at 8:19? What was so important that he went back there with her in the car - possibly already dead?! How long is he there for?

We don’t hear anything else about his day tol about 1-2:30pm - he’s spotted along the area where body eventually found - may have changed a tire.

We also have not heard: where was he between 8:19-1:00pm?

Where was he after 2:30pm? What did he do? Where did he go?

At what points during the day did he talk with mom (call or text or in person)? When did it get arranged he would pick up for class and by whom (if it even happened).

I’d like police to clarify as well: did mom call police immediately after the teacher said Maddie wasn’t in school all day (she said that’s when she realized something was truly wrong per her own interview to media). Or did she not contact them til 8pm (per the warrant)? Where did she contact them from? Where was SS and what time did he originally talk to Le?

we dont know for sure who took her to the party, and those are a lot of great questions, but the answers have not been confirmed, I'm sure LE is all over all of it. It will take some time for them to get all that. phone records etc.

 

[elliefant]

These charges were only filed after that tv interview took place. So during this investigation they downloaded his phone, and discovered sexual abuse material. At that point charges were filed with the offense dates beginning a couple years prior.

At the time this guy was in this family’s orbit, he had no criminal record.

We can only hope that mom had no idea that this abuse had taken place, prior to his arrest.

Oh, thank you, I obviously totally misunderstood that! I was shocked that he was still in the family after that so this explains why it was so.

 

[ttjo]

Oh, thank you, I obviously totally misunderstood that! I was shocked that he was still in the family after that so this explains why it was so.

your point made sense tho, I'm in Canada, so if you are charged even if not convicted it still comes up in a CWIS check (child welfare information system). however, most people don't check unless they need to (to clear fosters, all child welfare stuff, and rules around contact would be applicable if there was child welfare involvement only.