Deputies in Orlando, Florida, investigating the disappearance of 13-year-old Madeline “Maddie” Soto, left, arrested her mom’s boyfriend, 37-year-old Stephan Sterns, right, after allegedly finding “disturbing” images on his phone. Maddie was last seen Monday morning near Hunter’s Creek Middle School. (Orange County Sheriff’s Office)
Deputies in Florida arrested the boyfriend of a missing girl’s mother days after her disappearance when detectives reviewing his phone allegedly found “images and videos that were criminal, and sexual in nature.”
Madeline “Maddie” Soto, 13, was last seen with her mom’s boyfriend Stephan Sterns when he reportedly dropped her off near her Orlando school Monday morning. But she never made it inside and has been missing ever since.
On Wednesday night, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest of the 37-year-old Sterns for sexual battery and possession of child sexual abuse material. He’s considered the “prime suspect” in her disappearance after a forensic analysis of his phone uncovered “disturbing images,” according to the sheriff’s office. Deputies say the crimes occurred at the family home in Kissimmee. Sterns allegedly tried to delete evidence from the phone. After cops took him into custody, detectives attempted to interview him but he requested an attorney. He’s at the Orange County Jail without bond.
“Stephan Sterns had an opportunity [Wednesday] to come clean with detectives and help lead them to information about Maddie’s disappearance,” Orange County Sheriff John Mina said in a statement. “Her loved ones deserve answers and OCSO and the Kissimmee Police will not stop until we find Maddie.”
MAJOR DEVELOPMENT in the case of missing 13-year-old Madeline Soto:
This evening, the Kissimmee Police Department, working in conjunction with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, arrested Stephan Sterns, 37, for sexual battery and possession of child sexual abuse material. … pic.twitter.com/yZn8O8JpYM
— Orange County Sheriff’s Office (@OrangeCoSheriff) February 29, 2024
Officials have been fervently searching for Maddie since she was reported missing Monday morning. Mina said during a press conference Wednesday afternoon Sterns dropped off Maddie around 8:30 a.m. at a church a few blocks away from Hunters Creek Middle School. When her mother, Jenn Soto, went to pick Maddie up from school around 4:30 p.m., she learned her daughter never attended class that day, Mina said. The mother met with deputies around 8 p.m. to report her missing.
Police and K-9 units began searching the area but came up empty. Detectives interviewed her mom, Sterns and friends from school. Deputies obtained her phone, which she left at home before she left for school, with messages that indicated that when she turned 13, which was on Feb. 22, she wanted to go live in the woods. More than 100 deputies have been searching areas and collected video from around the school.
Mina said it’s not clear why Sterns dropped her off at the church as opposed to the school. Cops obtained grainy surveillance footage at the church of a girl who was possibly Maddie but detectives aren’t certain it’s her, Mina said.
“This is every parent’s worst nightmare. We can’t even imagine the pain and anguish Maddie’s family is going through,” Mina said. “We will not stop until we find her.”
Maddie’s mother told local Fox affiliate WOFL that her daughter has never run away before. They just celebrated her 13th birthday the day before she went missing.
“I’m trying to hope for the best, but I’m scared for her,” Soto said in an interview with the outlet. “I want her to be OK; I want her to be safe … I don’t want her to come back harmed. I just want her back — whatever that means, I just want her back.”
Maddie has blonde hair, blue eyes and is 5’1” and 110 pounds. She was last seen wearing a green jacket, black shorts and white Crocs. She has moles on the left side of her nose and the right side of her chin. Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to contact the Orange County Sheriff’s Office at 407-254-7000 or call 911.
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