Stephan Sterns affidavit: Breakdown of sexual battery, child porn-related charges amid Madeline Soto case

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. - An arrest affidavit for Stephan Sterns, the prime suspect in Madeline Soto's disappearance and death, revealed new allegations of sexual battery, molestation and child pornography-related crimes that date back to 2019. 

The State Attorney's Office filed 60 new charges against Madeline Soto's mother's boyfriend on Tuesday. He has not yet been charged with the murder of the 13-year-old, despite law enforcement's belief that he allegedly moved her body, which was found in rural Osceola County on March 1 – several days after she was reported missing.  

Sterns remains in custody at the Osceola County Jail. He was arrested on Feb. 28 and charged with sexual battery and possession of child sex abuse materials. Sterns was arrested by the Orange County Sheriff's Office, but was transferred to Osceola County, the county which he resides in. 

TIMELINE: Everything we know so far about Madeline Soto's disappearance, murder investigation

Booking photo of Stephan Sterns from the Osceola County Jail

The 36-page affidavit obtained by FOX 35 details all 60 counts of what Sterns is accused of, but FOX 35 is choosing not to release the details listed in the affidavit due to their graphic nature. 

The 60 new charges are as follows:

• 8 counts of sexual battery of a child under 12
• 5 counts of sexual battery with a child aged 12 to 18
• 7 counts of lewd and lascivious molestation
• 40 counts of unlawful possession of materials depicting sexual performance by a child (10 or more images)

These charges are listed in the affidavit, which you can view, in part, below:

The document does not name a victim, but does include a date range of how long Sterns has allegedly been in possession of graphic materials or/when the alleged abuse started – June 19, 2019. That range tops out on Feb. 26, 2024, the day Madeline Soto was last seen. A previous affidavit from the Kissimmee Police Department said that Sterns performed a "factory reset" on his phone on that day. 

NEW DETAILS: Stephan Sterns may have abused Madeline Soto years before her disappearance, death: affidavit 

While it remains unclear who the victim or victims are, if one of them was Madeline Soto, she would have been 8 years old when the alleged crimes began. The affidavit said Sterns was in a "position of familial or custodial authority" when he allegedly committed a handful of the sexual batteries. 

Madeline Soto, 13, was reported missing on Feb. 26, 2024, in Orange County, Florida. 

It also remains unclear exactly how many images Sterns was allegedly in possession of, but each count says he was in possession of "10 or more images." That means he could have been in possession of at least 400 images of "any form of child pornography." 

The State Attorney's Office defined what "child pornography" in this instance entails in the arrest affidavit. That definition, along with a breakdown of the other charges Sterns is facing, can be found below:

• Sexual battery: "Oral, anal, or female genital penetration by, or union with, the sexual organ of another or the anal or female genital penetration of another by any other object; however, sexual battery does not include an act done for a bona fide medical purpose."
• Lewd and lascivious molestation: "A person who intentionally touches in a lewd or lascivious manner the breasts, genitals, genital area, or buttocks, or the clothing covering them, of a person less than 16 years of age, or forces or entices a person under 16 years of age to so touch the perpetrator, commits lewd or lascivious molestation."
• Unlawful possession of materials depicting sexual performance by a child: "Knowingly possess any photograph, motion picture, exhibition, show, representation, image, data, computer depiction, or other presentation, which in whole or in part, (the person) knows to include any sexual conduct by a child, and in doing so possessed ten or more images of any form of child pornography, and the content of at least one image contains one or more of the following: a child who is younger than the age of five, sadomasochistic abuse involving a child, sexual battery involving a child, sexual bestiality involving a child, or any movie involving a child, regardless of length and regardless of whether the movie contains sound."

The difference between unlawful possession of materials depicting sexual performance by a child and possession of child pornography is that the child is involved in a sexual act. 

MEMORIAL: ‘Service of hope and healing’ draws mourners demanding answers

If convicted, here's a look at the possible sentences Sterns could be facing, according to the State Attorney's Office:

• Sexual battery of a child under 12: Life in prison (capital felony)
• Sexual battery with a child aged 12 to 18: Up to life in prison
• Lewd and lascivious molestation: Up to life in prison
• Unlawful possession of materials depicting sexual performance by a child (10 or more images): Up to 15 years in prison for each count

Sterns' trial is scheduled to begin in Osceola County court on May 13.