Stephan Sterns will spend the rest of his life behind bars after admitting to sexually abusing 13-year-old Madeline Soto and pleading no contest to her murder.
In an Osceola County courtroom on Monday afternoon, 39-year-old Sterns pleaded no contest to one count of first-degree premeditated murder in connection with the death of his former girlfriend’s daughter, Soto. He also pleaded guilty to over a dozen counts of sexual battery and seven counts of lewd or lascivious molestation.
An additional 40 charges related to the possession of child pornography were dropped by prosecutors.
After Sterns agreed to the plea deal, an Osceola County judge sentenced him to multiple sentences of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Prior to entering the new pleas, Sterns was facing two separate trials, with jury selection set to begin this week for the sexual battery case. A separate murder trial was scheduled to begin in September.
The State Attorney’s Office had previously announced that it would be seeking the death penalty against Sterns. However, after Sterns agreed to a plea deal, the death penalty was taken off the table.
Back on February 26, 2024, Soto’s mother contacted the Orange County Sheriff’s Office to report Soto missing after she failed to show up for school.
During an investigation into Soto’s disappearance, the Kissimmee Police Department found several “disturbing pictures and videos” on a phone belonging to her mother’s boyfriend, Sterns.
Two days after Soto was reported missing, KPD officers arrested Sterns on 60 charges that include sexual battery on a child under 12, sexual battery with a child between the ages of 12 to 18 (familial/custodial authority), lewd or lascivious molestation, and unlawful possession of materials depicting sexual performance by a child.
On March 1, 2024, Soto’s body was found in a wooded area in Osceola County.
Sterns became a suspect in Soto’s homicide, and he was formally indicted by an Osceola County grand jury on a first-degree murder charge on April 24, 2024.
Following his arrest, Sterns remained in custody at the Osceola Department of Corrections without bond while awaiting trial.