OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – A memorial set up in Osceola County for Madeline Soto, the 13-year-old girl who was reported missing and later found dead, is set to be removed, according to county officials.
Soto was reported missing in Orange County on Feb. 26 and law enforcement later found her body on March 1 in the woods along Hickory Tree Road in Osceola County. Her mother’s boyfriend, Stephan Sterns, was arrested originally on charges of sexual battery and child pornography and later charged with first-degree murder.
The county said on Wednesday that the memorial is on private property.
“There is a coordinated effort between a family representative and the property owner to remove the items from the memorial site,” a county spokesperson said in a statement.
Jenny Esquivel Mendez, a community advocate for Soto, said in a release that a permanent site is being figured out and “will be a place to honor not only Maddie, but all the children similarly affected who are living under Maddie’s wings.”
“The owners had generously allowed the memorial on their site but it was requested the memorial be moved after four months,” the release said. “The site is located in rural St. Cloud and has been featured on local and national news as a gathering place where the family, friends and community could express their love for the young teen, and give her a place where she could be remembered.”
The girl was reported missing around 8 p.m. on Feb. 26 after Sterns claimed he dropped her off that morning near Hunter’s Creek Middle School. However, when Madeline’s mother arrived at the school around 4:30 p.m. to pick her up, she was told Madeline had never come to school that day, deputies said.
Court documents released last month show a rough timeline of where Sterns allegedly traveled the day of the teen’s disappearance.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: