Madeline Soto's mom admits to knowing Stephan Sterns was 'grooming and abusing' her daughter: docs
Jenn Soto may have known about Madeline Soto abuse: new documents
FOX 35 has obtained new documents in the case regarding the disappearance and death of 13-year-old Madeline Soto. A detective in an incident report from the Orange County Sheriff's Office said they believed that her mother, Jennifer Soto, "accepted the victimization" of her daughter.
KISSIMMEE, Fla. - The Kissimmee Police Department has released new documents from their investigation into the alleged "disappearance" of 13-year-old Madeline Soto.
FOX 35 News reviewed over 100 pages of case supplemental reports, revealing inconsistencies in the accounts given by Madeline's mother, Jennifer Soto, and her mother's boyfriend, Stephan Sterns, about Madeline's whereabouts on February 26, the day she was reported missing after failing to show up for school.
Madeline was found dead just days later in rural Osceola County on March 1.
Madeline Soto's body was found in a wooded area in St. Cloud on March 1, 2024, just days after she was reported missing.
On that morning, the day her body was found, detectives contacted Jennifer for a follow-up interview. They informed her that the investigation was shifting from a missing persons case to a homicide as they believed she was deceased, at which point she became "silent for a few moments and started to cry," according to the report.
During the interview, Jennifer described Sterns as a "master liar" and said she wanted to believe he had nothing to do with Madeline's disappearance. However, after being shown evidence photos, she realized he was "guilty." When asked what she believed Sterns was guilty of, Jennifer replied, "he's been grooming and abusing my child," the report stated.
When asked if she thought Sterns had killed Madeline, she said, "at this point, I do," after they showed her a photo of Madeline slumped over in Sterns' vehicle.
Sterns was first arrested two days after Madeline was reported missing. He was charged with 60 counts of sexual-related crimes, including sexual battery, molestation and possession of child sex abuse material, after he voluntarily turned his phone over to law enforcement.
Booking photo of Stephan Sterns from the Osceola County Jail.
Several of Sterns' court hearings have been continued. As of right now, Sterns is scheduled to appear in court for a status hearing in mid-October.