THE DISAPPEARANCE OF SARAH STERN

I recently watched an old episode of Dateline NBC, and I was drawn to the story of Sarah Stern. I had to do more research on this sad disappearance.  The disappearance of 19-year-old Sarah Stern in December 2016 was a murder case that shocked her community in New Jersey. Her childhood friend, Liam McAtasney, was convicted of her murder, which authorities say was committed during a robbery.

On December 3, 2016, Stern's car was found abandoned on the Route 35 Bridge in Belmar, New Jersey, with the keys in the ignition. Initial speculation suggested suicide, but police soon suspected foul play.
The motive: Prosecutors stated that McAtasney, along with his roommate and Stern's former prom date, Preston Taylor, planned to rob Stern of cash she had inherited from her mother. The money had been left in a lockbox after her mother's death from cancer in 2013.

The case broke open after another friend, Anthony Curry, went to the police. Curry had secretly recorded a conversation with McAtasney in which he allegedly confessed to strangling Stern for a half-hour and robbing her. The horrifying recording was used as key evidence in the trial.

Following McAtasney's confession being revealed, Preston Taylor confessed to helping McAtasney dispose of Stern's body. As part of a plea deal, Taylor testified against McAtasney, describing how they threw her body from the bridge into the Shark River.

Despite extensive searches, including using Taylor's testimony, Stern's body has never been recovered. An ocean engineer testified that her remains were likely swept out to sea.

 
In February 2019, a jury found Liam McAtasney guilty of all charges against him, including first-degree murder, robbery, and desecrating human remains. In June 2019, McAtasney was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Preston Taylor received 18 years in prison for his role in the robbery and disposing of the body.

Sarah Stern deserved a lot better than this. A promising life was ended shortly by greed and violence...