Evidence conducted by authorities in Florida suggests that Madeline Soto, a minor who disappeared and was found dead five days later, may have suffered years of sexual abuse by her stepfather..
Court documents cited this week by WESH indicate that The suspect in the 13-year-old’s death abused her for at least two years.
At the beginning of the investigation, Agents were working on the theory that Stephen Stearns began abusing the girl when she was 12 years old.. However, a new criminal complaint shows that the boss allegedly started earlier.
The death of the teenager is under investigation. The Orange County Sheriff’s Office indicated that the uniform was worn They found disturbing images on the man’s cell phone.
Some of these were from August 2022, when Madeline was 11 years old.
Documents held by the Kissimmee Police Department show that Soto was a victim of sexual assaultAnd the evidence suggests that Stearns is responsible.
Alleged abuse was reported in the home that Soto, her mother and the man shared. Stearns was the boyfriend of Soto’s mother.
at this moment, The alleged abuser is being held in the Osceola County Jail on charges of sexual assault and possession of child sexual abuse material.
Stearns was arrested last week.
The man, who appeared in court for the first time on Saturday, He has not been formally charged for the young girl’s death..
The authorities make such an allegation The suspect provided his cell phone for review, but indicated he accidentally reset it on February 26.The day Soto disappeared.
Despite the change, Investigators were able to recover videos and images of the device.
On the day the child disappeared, it was revealed that Stearns had dropped her off at Hunter Creek Middle School.
However, County Sheriff John Mina later revealed that the victim was never dropped off at the scene.
Mina added that Stearns is seen on video throwing items into the trash around 7:35 a.m. that day.
The teenager’s body was found in a wooded area in Osceola County last Friday after a five-day search.
