What Happened to Madeline Soto? Inside the Tragic Disappearance of a Florida Teen and the Abuse It Revealed By Samantha Stutsman

When 13-year-old Madeline “Maddie” Soto vanished on Feb. 26, 2024, what began as a desperate search for a missing teen quickly unraveled into something far more horrifying.

Madeline was first reported missing when she failed to arrive at school. Her mother’s boyfriend, Stephan Sterns, initially claimed he had dropped her off that morning — but investigators quickly discovered via surveillance footage that he had never done so.

On Feb. 28, 2024, two days after Madeline went missing, Sterns was arrested on charges of sexual battery and possession of child sexual abuse material. He was identified early as the prime suspect in her disappearance.

Madeline’s body was found days later on March 1, 2024, and Sterns was charged with first-degree murder nearly two months later. He pleaded no contest to first-degree premeditated murder and guilty to multiple sexual battery counts in July 2025 and was given 21 life sentences, per NBC News.

So what happened to Madeline Soto? Here’s everything to know about her disappearance and murder.

Who was Madeline Soto?

Madeline Soto was born in February 2011, to Jennifer Soto and Tyler Wallace. She attended Hunter’s Creek Middle School in Orlando, Fla., where she lived in an apartment with her mom and her mother’s boyfriend, Sterns.

Wallace lives in Texas with his wife, per WFTV 9, and communicated mainly with Madeline through social media.

“Maddie was just the most important person to my wife and I,” he told the news outlet.

Madeline loved music, dancing, art, drawing and journaling, according to community members who attended a memorial for her, per WESH.

What happened to Madeline Soto?

Madeline was reported missing by her mother, Jennifer, on Feb. 26, 2024, after she failed to show up for school at Hunter’s Creek Middle School.

Madeline was supposed to have been dropped off at school by her mother’s boyfriend, Sterns, but surveillance footage later confirmed that he never arrived.

“We believe she was already dead at the time and that Stephan Sterns moved her body in the early morning hours on that day. We have video evidence that shows Sterns discarding items in a dumpster in that apartment complex in Kissimmee at 7:35 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 26,” Orange County Sheriff John W. Mina said during a March 1 press conference.

“Detectives later recovered Madeline’s backpack and her school-issued laptop from that dumpster. At 8:19 a.m., we have evidence that shows Sterns returning to the complex, and Madeline was visible in that vehicle,” continued Mina. “We believe she was already dead at that time.”

Just hours after the press conference, law enforcement discovered Madeline’s body in a remote wooded area near St. Cloud, Fla.

What was Madeline Soto’s cause of death?

A medical examiner determined Madeline’s cause of death as strangulation.

The medical examiner ruled the manner of her death as a homicide, FOX 35 Orlando, WESH and Click Orlando reported.

Was there evidence of sexual abuse in Madeline Soto’s case?

During the investigation, forensic analysis uncovered images and videos of sexual abuse of a child on Sterns’ phone, per WESH, WFLA and FOX 35. Additionally, in an arrest affidavit, police alleged that Sterns had abused Madeline when she was 11 years old.

In an interview with detectives shortly before Madeline’s body was found, Jennifer claimed she had no idea that Sterns was sexually abusing her daughter. She insisted she tried “watching her like a hawk,” but added that she was “oblivious to everything.”

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Despite her denial, Jennifer allegedly sent Madeline to sleep in the same room as Sterns, WESH reported in June 2024 after reviewing a document from the state attorney’s office. She reportedly told police that she did so because she’d had a long day at work and needed to rest.

After being shown evidence, including photographs, Jennifer allegedly conceded to detectives: “He’s been grooming and abusing my child.” She claimed that Sterns was a “master liar” and accepted that his account of Madeline’s disappearance was untrustworthy.

Who killed Madeline Soto?

On Feb. 28, 2024 — two days after Madeline went missing — Sterns was arrested on charges of sexual battery and possession of child sexual abuse material. From the earliest stages of the investigation, he had emerged as the primary suspect in her disappearance.

Sterns was charged with first-degree murder on April 24, 2024, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE.

Where is Stephan Sterns now?

Sterns initially entered a not guilty plea to the 60 counts of sexual battery and one count of murder he faced. Then, on July 21, 2025, the same day his sexual battery trial was set to begin, he pleaded no contest to first-degree premeditated murder.

Sterns also pleaded guilty to eight counts of capital sexual battery of someone under the age of 12, five counts of sexual battery of someone between the ages of 12 and 18 and seven counts of lewd or lascivious molestation. The same day, Sterns was given 21 life sentences, which will be served concurrently, per NBC News.

“Because of the actions of this depraved man, I will never meet the woman she was becoming,” Wallace told the court, per NBC News. “And I can’t — I can’t grasp it.”

Where is Jennifer Soto now?

Law enforcement has confirmed that Jennifer is not considered a suspect, and there are no plans to charge her in connection with Madeline’s death, per WFTV 9.

Jennifer has not made public statements or appeared in media interviews since Sterns was arrested.

In April 2024, Fox 35 Orlando reported that her phone had been disconnected.