NJ - Sarah Stern, 19, Neptune City, 2 Dec 2016 *Arrests* #2

[inmyhumbleopinion]

Stolen cash found buried inside remote mortar on Sandy Hook

FREEHOLD - Investigators had to scale the top of a mortar battery near the end of Sandy Hook and then climb down treacherous terrain to the area where they located a safe containing Sarah Stern's stolen money, a detective told a jury today as the trial of Stern's accused killer continued.

Detective Nicholas Cattelona of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office testified that Preston Taylor, the roommate of Liam McAtasney, led investigators on Feb. 1, 2017, to a remote area of Sandy Hook where he said he had buried the safe.

It was located in mortar battery No. 329, one of a series of four batteries in that area of the beachfront national park that once protected shipping routes into New York City, Cattelona said.

Cattelona described getting to the location where the safe was buried.

"We were escorted up a steep incline of the battery,'' he said.

Detectives "walked across a ridge that separates the four batteries from the top,'' he said.

"From there, Mr. Taylor directed us to the area where he buried the safe,'' Cattelona said.

"We had to climb down some stairs,'' he said. "There were areas where the stairs were absent, so we just had to make our way down as best we could. ...Some of it was concrete. Some of it was moss and overgrowth.''

Taylor stayed on top as the detectives descended into the battery, but he directed them to a landmark near where the safe was buried - a concrete wall with moss on it, the detective said. Nearby, the detectives located the safe, he said.

"It wasn't buried deep at all,'' Cattelona said, although he said the area where it was located was out of the way.

Sarah Stern murder: Stolen cash found buried inside remote mortar on Sandy Hook

Prosecutors allege that McAtasney, 21, of Neptune City strangled Stern, his childhood friend, during a robbery on Dec. 2, 2016 in which he stole money she had recently found in a family home in Avon.

They allege that McAtasney and Taylor then removed the 19-year-old woman's body from her Neptune City home and threw it off the Route 35 bridge from Belmar to Neptune, leaving her car atop the span to make it look like she committed suicide.

Cattelona testified that a key found in a car that was being driven by McAtasney following his arrest in February 2017 opened the safe found buried at Sandy Hook.

Inside the safe was $9,390 in old bills, Cattelona said.

Updated 21 minutes ago:

“Of the bills found in the safe at Sandy Hook, Cattelona said, ‘Some of them were stuck together, falling apart, they were all older currency, not widely circulated any more.’

Detective Sgt. Ryan Muller, also of the prosecutor's office, testified that Taylor the same day also led investigators to the spot where a second safe was buried at Shark River Park in Wall.

Taylor previously testified that cash from that safe, which had been removed from Stern's home, was transferred to the other safe that was buried at Sandy Hook.

Muller said the burial site was some 20 minutes into the Shark River Park, and 10 minutes into the woods off of the park's Hidden Creek Trail, over two manmade bridges and down a decline leading to a creek, nearby a tee-pee made of twigs where minors sometimes hang out.

There, by a tree that had fallen over the creek, was the spot that Taylor pointed them to, where they found the other safe buried, Muller testified.

Muller said he was able to dig out the safe with gloved hands because it wasn't buried that deeply.

Cattelona testified that safe contained some white index cards, similar to cards that were used to separate bills in Stern's safe deposit box, and a hair that turned out to be that of an animal.”

I’m wondering if this is the safe they found pieces of Sarah’s clothes in.

 

[spaz1959]

Some articles appear to have been updated with additional information:

“An expert on ocean tides testified Tuesday that Sarah Stern, who prosecutors allege was killed by her childhood friend and tossed off a Jersey Shore bridge in 2016, likely drifted out to sea before anyone could find her body.

[SBM]

During cross-examination, defense attorney Carlos Diaz-Cobo highlighted the fact that Roarty was not present on the bridge when prosecutors claim Stern’s body was dumped into the Shark River.

‘It’s fair to say you don’t know where that body is,’ Diaz-Cobo asked Roarty.

‘Correct,’ he responded.”

Sarah Stern’s body was swept out to sea before anyone could find it, expert testifies. It’s never been found


“A stoic Michael Stern sat directly across his daughter’s alleged killer on the witness stand Tuesday afternoon in Superior Court.

Assistant Monmouth County Prosecutor Meghan Doyle peppered him with questions in the Freehold courtroom about his only child, Sarah Stern, his communication with her and the relationship the two shared. The trips the two went on together to digital-media conventions, disputes over political candidates and his wife’s death from cancer in 2013.

[SBM]

Michael Stern said he was unaware of the shoebox full of cash Sarah found in the family’s second home in Avon-by-the-Sea. The shoebox contained approximately $25,000 in cash and was left with a note from Sarah’s mother, authorities said. That money had been deposited in a safety-deposit box at the Kearny Bank in Bradley Beach, authorities said. Taylor testified at the start of the trial that McAtasney went with Stern to the bank where she withdrew some of the money before she was killed.

During cross-examination of Michael Stern, defense attorney Carlos Diaz-Cobo highlighted that Sarah Stern went to trips to conventions without her father and that she had expressed a desire to move.

Diaz-Cobo asked whether he was aware of his daughter moving personal items to a neighbor’s home and to McAtasney’s apartment while her father was on vacation in Disney World.

Stern said he knew Sarah moved stuff to the neighbor’s house, but not McAtasney’s place.

Diaz-Cobo also reiterated that Michael Stern was made aware that McAtasney was at the search party for Sarah Stern in December 2016, and that McAtasney had come up to him.

[SBM]”
‘He’s right there.' Sarah Stern’s father faces his daughter’s alleged killer at trial


“[SBM]

After Sarah Stern disappeared, McAtasney told police she had once talked about suicide and that she had a rocky relationship with her father and wanted to go to Canada to get away from him. He also told them she had lost all respect for her father and that her father lost $2 million in bad investments in Disney stock.

Michael Stern's testimony contradicted all that. He said he never had $2 million to invest in Disney. Although the two of them were in sharp disagreement about the 2016 presidential race, Michael Stern described interactions with his daughter that seemed to portray a normal, loving relationship.

[SBM]

Following Michael Stern's testimony, a detective with the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office told the jury about finding some of that money in Sarah's safe deposit box at Kearny Bank in Bradley Beach after she disappeared.

Bank employees have previously testified Sarah was in the bank on Dec. 2, 2016, to access the safe deposit box. And, McAtasney's former roommate, Preston Taylor, previously testified that McAtasney had convinced her to go to the bank to take out the found money so the two of them could run off to Canada or California, when in reality, he planned to kill her and take the cash.

Prosecutor's Detective Nicholas Cattelon testified Tuesday that after Sarah Stern's disappearance, her safe deposit box still contained $25,250 in cash.

‘It was all older currency, not in circulation anymore,’ Cattelon said.

He described the cash as ‘dry rot, stuck together, falling apart, it was very brittle.’

Cattelon also described processing Sarah's car for fingerprints, but finding none.

[SBM]”
Sarah Stern murder: A shooting star text to her dad, and then forever silence

2 million in Disney Stock! ?Talk about grasping at straws! They lived in Neptune City, not Rumson or Cream Ridge!

 

[spaz1959]

Updated 21 minutes ago:

“Of the bills found in the safe at Sandy Hook, Cattelona said, ‘Some of them were stuck together, falling apart, they were all older currency, not widely circulated any more.’

Detective Sgt. Ryan Muller, also of the prosecutor's office, testified that Taylor the same day also led investigators to the spot where a second safe was buried at Shark River Park in Wall.

Taylor previously testified that cash from that safe, which had been removed from Stern's home, was transferred to the other safe that was buried at Sandy Hook.

Muller said the burial site was some 20 minutes into the Shark River Park, and 10 minutes into the woods off of the park's Hidden Creek Trail, over two manmade bridges and down a decline leading to a creek, nearby a tee-pee made of twigs where minors sometimes hang out.

There, by a tree that had fallen over the creek, was the spot that Taylor pointed them to, where they found the other safe buried, Muller testified.

Muller said he was able to dig out the safe with gloved hands because it wasn't buried that deeply.

Cattelona testified that safe contained some white index cards, similar to cards that were used to separate bills in Stern's safe deposit box, and a hair that turned out to be that of an animal.”

I’m wondering if this is the safe they found pieces of Sarah’s clothes in.

Interesting. Wouldn't the Detective have mentioned the clothes, or is that to come further. I wonder if PT &LM buried the deposit boxes together? Did the LE check out the land that was mentioned as LM father owning?
So, the key to the safety deposit box was found in LM car when he was arrested. Not looking so good LM. Maybe as SS was leaving the state of NJ by Jumping off the Belmar bridge, and swimming to Canada, she gave the key to LM for safe keeping! (Spoken in my native language of Jersey, sarcasm .

 

[inmyhumbleopinion]

“FREEHOLD - Jurors in the Sarah Stern murder trial heard the first interview that defendant Liam McAtasney gave to police.

The interview was conducted in December 2016, not long after Stern was reported missing. Police spoke with McAtasney because he was the last person to see Stern before she went missing.

McAtasney is heard telling detectives, ‘Over the past few weeks she was packing up things in containers and moving them to other people’s houses.’

When asked if he thought that the behavior was strange, McAtasney admitted that he did at first, ‘but she always wanted to go to Canada.’

McAtasney is heard multiple times in the interview eluding to the fact that Stern may have wanted to run away from home or even commit suicide.

[SBM]

During the interview, McAtasney asks about the possibility of Stern’s body being in the water.

‘One thing I kind of wanted to talk to you guys about was, if she did jump off the bridge, what are the odds that she’s not somewhere all the way out in the ocean by now?’ he is heard asking.

When detective ask McAtasney if Stern told him that she was going to jump, he said ‘No.’

[SBM]”
(interview video at the link)

Sarah Stern jury hears first police interview with alleged killer

 

[cass523]

Interesting. Wouldn't the Detective have mentioned the clothes, or is that to come further. I wonder if PT &LM buried the deposit boxes together? Did the LE check out the land that was mentioned as LM father owning?
So, the key to the safety deposit box was found in LM car when he was arrested. Not looking so good LM. Maybe as SS was leaving the state of NJ by Jumping off the Belmar bridge, and swimming to Canada, she gave the key to LM for safe keeping! (Spoken in my native language of Jersey, sarcasm .

The key: "Investigators also recovered a key to Stern's safe deposit box during a search of the apartment McAtasney and Taylor shared in Neptune City, Cattelona said. The key was hidden inside a vent in the floor of McAtasney's bedroom, he said."

You are correct, no talk of clothing.

Sarah Stern murder: Stolen cash found buried inside remote mortar on Sandy Hook

 

[inmyhumbleopinion]

“[SBM]

McAtasney, 21, wasn’t testifying on the sixth day of the trial before Judge Richard English in Monmouth County Superior Court. But the jury watched a video recording of one of his first sit-down interviews with detectives from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the Belmar Police Department.

The interview, which lasted more than an hour, occurred on Dec. 6, 2016, three days after Stern was reported missing. Her car was found Dec. 3, 2016, abandoned on the Route 35 bridge in Belmar with the keys inside.

In the video, McAtasney offers Detective Brian Weisbrot several different possible leads: Stern, 19, had suicidal tendencies; she loved Canada and wanted to move there; she had a rocky relationship with her father.

[SBM]

This video interview was first played in English’s Freehold courtroom on Jan. 9, 2018. At that time, McAtasney’s first attorney, Charles Moriarty, was seeking to get it tossed from evidence on the grounds that McAtasney wasn’t read his Miranda rights prior to the interview.

Weisbrot testified then and on Wednesday that McAtasney wasn’t a suspect in a homicide investigation when he sat down with the investigators. McAtasney willingly came to Belmar police headquarters for the interview and was allowed to leave at any time, the detective testified.

[SBM]

McAtasney explains his day with Stern on Dec. 2, 2016. He said he woke up around noon, went to Stern’s Neptune City house and helped her pack boxes. The two, he explained, then went to get Taco Bell before returning to Stern’s home to eat lunch and play video games. McAtasney said he then left for work.

But Weisbrot questioned McAtasney as to why he wasn’t forthcoming about a trip to Stern's bank prior to their arrival at her home.

‘You haven't talked to us about the bank. Why didn't you tell us about the bank?’ Weisbrot asked.

McAtasney conceded the two went to Stern’s bank but he claimed Sarah didn’t tell him why. McAtasney said Stern had recently found money left by her deceased mother in a shoebox in the home. He said he believed there was anywhere from $20,000 to $100,000.

[SBM]

Later in the interview, McAtasney told Weisbrot that Stern attempted to kill herself on her 16th birthday.

During his testimony, [Preston] Taylor said McAtasney had instructed him to mention things to police that would ‘make (Sarah Stern) look unstable,’ like that she was a closet lesbian.

That was the first point McAtasney made to Weisbrot in his interview.

‘We have reason to believe she could be a lesbian,’ McAtasney offers. ‘She has been known to obsess over girls in the past.’

[SBM]

McAtasney’s trial attorney, Carlos Diaz-Cobo, didn’t have time to cross-examine Weisbrot on Wednesday. That’s scheduled for Thursday morning.

[SBM]”
‘What are the odds she’s not somewhere all the way out in the ocean by now?’ Sarah Stern’s accused killer asked detectives

 

[inmyhumbleopinion]

The key: "Investigators also recovered a key to Stern's safe deposit box during a search of the apartment McAtasney and Taylor shared in Neptune City, Cattelona said. The key was hidden inside a vent in the floor of McAtasney's bedroom, he said."

You are correct, no talk of clothing.

Sarah Stern murder: Stolen cash found buried inside remote mortar on Sandy Hook

Also from the article:

“McAtasney told Belmar Detective John Flanagan and Detective Brian Weisbrot of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office in the videotaped session that he had been friends with Stern since the first grade, and they talked at least once a week.

He told them he lost his cellphone on Dec. 2, 2016, when he had spent the day with Stern — the last time she was seen alive.

When he couldn't locate his lost phone, McAtasney told detectives he got a new one at Walmart two days later.

Weisbrot, on the witness stand Wednesday afternoon, said he did a search of McAtasney's new phone, as well as the lost phone that was later located in an area next to Stern's driveway.

While Stern was listed as a contact in the old phone, there was no listing for her in McAtasney's new phone, Weisbrot told the jury.

He said he examined the new phone for Internet searches and text messages under the names Sarah, Stern, and Sarah Stern, but none were located in the phone.

‘The name Sarah was never programmed into his phone,’ Weisbrot said of the new phone McAtasney purchased after Stern's disappearance.”

ETA: The kid doesn’t sound like the brightest crayon in the box, IMO.

 

[spaz1959]

“[SBM]

McAtasney, 21, wasn’t testifying on the sixth day of the trial before Judge Richard English in Monmouth County Superior Court. But the jury watched a video recording of one of his first sit-down interviews with detectives from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the Belmar Police Department.

The interview, which lasted more than an hour, occurred on Dec. 6, 2016, three days after Stern was reported missing. Her car was found Dec. 3, 2016, abandoned on the Route 35 bridge in Belmar with the keys inside.

In the video, McAtasney offers Detective Brian Weisbrot several different possible leads: Stern, 19, had suicidal tendencies; she loved Canada and wanted to move there; she had a rocky relationship with her father.

[SBM]

This video interview was first played in English’s Freehold courtroom on Jan. 9, 2018. At that time, McAtasney’s first attorney, Charles Moriarty, was seeking to get it tossed from evidence on the grounds that McAtasney wasn’t read his Miranda rights prior to the interview.

Weisbrot testified then and on Wednesday that McAtasney wasn’t a suspect in a homicide investigation when he sat down with the investigators. McAtasney willingly came to Belmar police headquarters for the interview and was allowed to leave at any time, the detective testified.

[SBM]

McAtasney explains his day with Stern on Dec. 2, 2016. He said he woke up around noon, went to Stern’s Neptune City house and helped her pack boxes. The two, he explained, then went to get Taco Bell before returning to Stern’s home to eat lunch and play video games. McAtasney said he then left for work.

But Weisbrot questioned McAtasney as to why he wasn’t forthcoming about a trip to Stern's bank prior to their arrival at her home.

‘You haven't talked to us about the bank. Why didn't you tell us about the bank?’ Weisbrot asked.

McAtasney conceded the two went to Stern’s bank but he claimed Sarah didn’t tell him why. McAtasney said Stern had recently found money left by her deceased mother in a shoebox in the home. He said he believed there was anywhere from $20,000 to $100,000.

[SBM]

Later in the interview, McAtasney told Weisbrot that Stern attempted to kill herself on her 16th birthday.

During his testimony, [Preston] Taylor said McAtasney had instructed him to mention things to police that would ‘make (Sarah Stern) look unstable,’ like that she was a closet lesbian.

That was the first point McAtasney made to Weisbrot in his interview.

‘We have reason to believe she could be a lesbian,’ McAtasney offers. ‘She has been known to obsess over girls in the past.’

[SBM]

McAtasney’s trial attorney, Carlos Diaz-Cobo, didn’t have time to cross-examine Weisbrot on Wednesday. That’s scheduled for Thursday morning.

[SBM]”
‘What are the odds she’s not somewhere all the way out in the ocean by now?’ Sarah Stern’s accused killer asked detectives

What a piece of excrement LM and PT are! What the hell would it matter if Sarah was in or out of the closet? As if that detail true or not makes her suicidal? You had her Damn key! Psychopaths .

 

[spaz1959]

Also from the article:

“McAtasney told Belmar Detective John Flanagan and Detective Brian Weisbrot of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office in the videotaped session that he had been friends with Stern since the first grade, and they talked at least once a week.

He told them he lost his cellphone on Dec. 2, 2016, when he had spent the day with Stern — the last time she was seen alive.

When he couldn't locate his lost phone, McAtasney told detectives he got a new one at Walmart two days later.

Weisbrot, on the witness stand Wednesday afternoon, said he did a search of McAtasney's new phone, as well as the lost phone that was later located in an area next to Stern's driveway.

While Stern was listed as a contact in the old phone, there was no listing for her in McAtasney's new phone, Weisbrot told the jury.

He said he examined the new phone for Internet searches and text messages under the names Sarah, Stern, and Sarah Stern, but none were located in the phone.

‘The name Sarah was never programmed into his phone,’ Weisbrot said of the new phone McAtasney purchased after Stern's disappearance.”

Wonder why? !

 

[spaz1959]

Question -if LM is found guilty, what prison will he most likely be sent to ?

 

[spaz1959]

“[SBM]

McAtasney, 21, wasn’t testifying on the sixth day of the trial before Judge Richard English in Monmouth County Superior Court. But the jury watched a video recording of one of his first sit-down interviews with detectives from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the Belmar Police Department.

The interview, which lasted more than an hour, occurred on Dec. 6, 2016, three days after Stern was reported missing. Her car was found Dec. 3, 2016, abandoned on the Route 35 bridge in Belmar with the keys inside.

In the video, McAtasney offers Detective Brian Weisbrot several different possible leads: Stern, 19, had suicidal tendencies; she loved Canada and wanted to move there; she had a rocky relationship with her father.

[SBM]

This video interview was first played in English’s Freehold courtroom on Jan. 9, 2018. At that time, McAtasney’s first attorney, Charles Moriarty, was seeking to get it tossed from evidence on the grounds that McAtasney wasn’t read his Miranda rights prior to the interview.

Weisbrot testified then and on Wednesday that McAtasney wasn’t a suspect in a homicide investigation when he sat down with the investigators. McAtasney willingly came to Belmar police headquarters for the interview and was allowed to leave at any time, the detective testified.

[SBM]

McAtasney explains his day with Stern on Dec. 2, 2016. He said he woke up around noon, went to Stern’s Neptune City house and helped her pack boxes. The two, he explained, then went to get Taco Bell before returning to Stern’s home to eat lunch and play video games. McAtasney said he then left for work.

But Weisbrot questioned McAtasney as to why he wasn’t forthcoming about a trip to Stern's bank prior to their arrival at her home.

‘You haven't talked to us about the bank. Why didn't you tell us about the bank?’ Weisbrot asked.

McAtasney conceded the two went to Stern’s bank but he claimed Sarah didn’t tell him why. McAtasney said Stern had recently found money left by her deceased mother in a shoebox in the home. He said he believed there was anywhere from $20,000 to $100,000.

[SBM]

Later in the interview, McAtasney told Weisbrot that Stern attempted to kill herself on her 16th birthday.

During his testimony, [Preston] Taylor said McAtasney had instructed him to mention things to police that would ‘make (Sarah Stern) look unstable,’ like that she was a closet lesbian.

That was the first point McAtasney made to Weisbrot in his interview.

‘We have reason to believe she could be a lesbian,’ McAtasney offers. ‘She has been known to obsess over girls in the past.’

[SBM]

McAtasney’s trial attorney, Carlos Diaz-Cobo, didn’t have time to cross-examine Weisbrot on Wednesday. That’s scheduled for Thursday morning.

[SBM]”
‘What are the odds she’s not somewhere all the way out in the ocean by now?’ Sarah Stern’s accused killer asked detectives

Was the video in its entirety shown in court today?

 

[Seattle1]

Updated 21 minutes ago:

“Of the bills found in the safe at Sandy Hook, Cattelona said, ‘Some of them were stuck together, falling apart, they were all older currency, not widely circulated any more.’

Detective Sgt. Ryan Muller, also of the prosecutor's office, testified that Taylor the same day also led investigators to the spot where a second safe was buried at Shark River Park in Wall.

Taylor previously testified that cash from that safe, which had been removed from Stern's home, was transferred to the other safe that was buried at Sandy Hook.

Muller said the burial site was some 20 minutes into the Shark River Park, and 10 minutes into the woods off of the park's Hidden Creek Trail, over two manmade bridges and down a decline leading to a creek, nearby a tee-pee made of twigs where minors sometimes hang out.

There, by a tree that had fallen over the creek, was the spot that Taylor pointed them to, where they found the other safe buried, Muller testified.

Muller said he was able to dig out the safe with gloved hands because it wasn't buried that deeply.

Cattelona testified that safe contained some white index cards, similar to cards that were used to separate bills in Stern's safe deposit box, and a hair that turned out to be that of an animal.”

I’m wondering if this is the safe they found pieces of Sarah’s clothes in.

Why do you suspect Sarah's clothes would be inside the safe with her stolen currency?

 

[Seattle1]

Interesting. Wouldn't the Detective have mentioned the clothes, or is that to come further. I wonder if PT &LM buried the deposit boxes together? Did the LE check out the land that was mentioned as LM father owning?
So, the key to the safety deposit box was found in LM car when he was arrested. Not looking so good LM. Maybe as SS was leaving the state of NJ by Jumping off the Belmar bridge, and swimming to Canada, she gave the key to LM for safe keeping! (Spoken in my native language of Jersey, sarcasm .

I'm trying to understand your reference to "deposit boxes:" there's a safety deposit box located at the bank with about $25k+, and opens with key (key found in LM car); and safebox containing about $9,300+- buried in shallow ground at Sandy Hook.

Is there another deposit box, and if so, where is it? TIA

 

[Seattle1]

Question -if LM is found guilty, what prison will he most likely be sent to ?

I believe Trenton and East Jersey are the maximum security prisons in NJ where the LWOP call home.

 

[Niner]

Thursday, February 7th:
*Trial continues (Day 7) (@ 9am ET) - NJ - Sarah Stern (19) (Dec. 2, 2016, Neptune City; not found) - *Liam McAtasney (21/19 @ time of crime) charged (2/1/17) & indicted (2/2/17) with 1st degree murder, 1st degree robbery, felony murder, robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery, desecrating human remains (2nd degree), tampering with physical evidence & hindering his own apprehension. Plead not guilty. No bond. DA seeks Life.
Trial started 1/23/19; should last 4 to 6 weeks & will only be on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, & Thursdays.
1/23/19 Day 1: Opening Statements. State witness: Preston Taylor (accomplice). 1/24/19 Day 2: State witnesses: Preston Taylor. Carly Draper (Sarah's friend). Shirley Longo (Sarah's aunt). Michelle Bahr (Sarah's cousin). Kearny Bank Branch Manager Raymond Bloetjes & teller Lynda Capobianco. A detective with the financial crimes unit of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office. Laura Carmody, a waitress & former co-worker of Liam at Brennan's Steakhouse. Trial continues on Tuesday, 1/29.
1/29/19 Day 3: State witnesses: Neptune Township Officer Shane Leaming. Neptune City Patrolman Michael Kepler. Neptune City Police Sgt. Bradley Hindes. Megan Barr, Sarah's cousin. Detective William Raynor of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office. Detective Dave Sidorakis of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office. Trial continues on 1/30.
1/30/19 Day 4: State witnesses: Linda Stitely, Sarah's aunt. Robert St. Amand, close friend of Sarah's. N.J. State Police Sgt. Pete Pfifer (assigned to the Point Pleasant bureau of the marine services bureau, in charge of searches in the Shark River). Trial is scheduled to resume on Tuesday, 2/5.
2/5/19 Day 5: State witnesses: State witnesses: Esther D'Amico, manager of Bruno's Pizzeria (Stern's former boss). Hugh Roarty, an ocean engineer with Rutgers University. 5: Michael Stern, Sarah's father. Prosecutor's Detective Nicholas Cattelon. Trial continues on 2/6.
2/6/19 Day 6: Detective Nicholas Cattelona of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office. Detective Sgt. Ryan Muller, also of the prosecutor's office. Jurors heard the first interview that McAtasney gave to police. The interview was conducted in December 6, 2016. Detective Brian Weisbrot, Belmar Police Dept (he did interview on 12/6/16). Trial continues on 2/7.
His accomplice Preston Taylor (19) faces up to 20 years in state prison and is subject to the No Early Release Act. (Was facing up to life in prison on the felony murder charge and 51 years for the additional charges). He pleaded guilty (4/27/17) to 1st degree robbery, 2nd degree conspiracy to commit robbery, 2nd degree distributing or desecrating human remains, 2 counts of 3rd degree hindering apprehension & 4th degree tampering with physical evidence. His sentencing will be adjourned until later in the year, pending McAtasney’s trial. Will testify at LMc's trial.

 

[spaz1959]

I believe Trenton and East Jersey are the maximum security prisons in NJ where the LWOP call home.

That's nice

 

[spaz1959]

I'm trying to understand your reference to "deposit boxes:" there's a safety deposit box located at the bank with about $25k+, and opens with key (key found in LM car); and safebox containing about $9,300+- buried in shallow ground at Sandy Hook.

Is there another deposit box, and if so, where is it? TIA

2 security or deposit boxes were buried by LM and PT. One was buried at Sandy Hook, NJ the other was buried at Shark River Park in Neptune, NJ.

 

[spaz1959]

Thursday, February 7th:
*Trial continues (Day 7) (@ 9am ET) - NJ - Sarah Stern (19) (Dec. 2, 2016, Neptune City; not found) - *Liam McAtasney (21/19 @ time of crime) charged (2/1/17) & indicted (2/2/17) with 1st degree murder, 1st degree robbery, felony murder, robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery, desecrating human remains (2nd degree), tampering with physical evidence & hindering his own apprehension. Plead not guilty. No bond. DA seeks Life.
Trial started 1/23/19; should last 4 to 6 weeks & will only be on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, & Thursdays.
1/23/19 Day 1: Opening Statements. State witness: Preston Taylor (accomplice). 1/24/19 Day 2: State witnesses: Preston Taylor. Carly Draper (Sarah's friend). Shirley Longo (Sarah's aunt). Michelle Bahr (Sarah's cousin). Kearny Bank Branch Manager Raymond Bloetjes & teller Lynda Capobianco. A detective with the financial crimes unit of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office. Laura Carmody, a waitress & former co-worker of Liam at Brennan's Steakhouse. Trial continues on Tuesday, 1/29.
1/29/19 Day 3: State witnesses: Neptune Township Officer Shane Leaming. Neptune City Patrolman Michael Kepler. Neptune City Police Sgt. Bradley Hindes. Megan Barr, Sarah's cousin. Detective William Raynor of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office. Detective Dave Sidorakis of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office. Trial continues on 1/30.
1/30/19 Day 4: State witnesses: Linda Stitely, Sarah's aunt. Robert St. Amand, close friend of Sarah's. N.J. State Police Sgt. Pete Pfifer (assigned to the Point Pleasant bureau of the marine services bureau, in charge of searches in the Shark River). Trial is scheduled to resume on Tuesday, 2/5.
2/5/19 Day 5: State witnesses: State witnesses: Esther D'Amico, manager of Bruno's Pizzeria (Stern's former boss). Hugh Roarty, an ocean engineer with Rutgers University. 5: Michael Stern, Sarah's father. Prosecutor's Detective Nicholas Cattelon. Trial continues on 2/6.
2/6/19 Day 6: Detective Nicholas Cattelona of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office. Detective Sgt. Ryan Muller, also of the prosecutor's office. Jurors heard the first interview that McAtasney gave to police. The interview was conducted in December 6, 2016. Detective Brian Weisbrot, Belmar Police Dept (he did interview on 12/6/16). Trial continues on 2/7.
His accomplice Preston Taylor (19) faces up to 20 years in state prison and is subject to the No Early Release Act. (Was facing up to life in prison on the felony murder charge and 51 years for the additional charges). He pleaded guilty (4/27/17) to 1st degree robbery, 2nd degree conspiracy to commit robbery, 2nd degree distributing or desecrating human remains, 2 counts of 3rd degree hindering apprehension & 4th degree tampering with physical evidence. His sentencing will be adjourned until later in the year, pending McAtasney’s trial. Will testify at LMc's trial.

Thank you niner!

 

[spaz1959]

Why do you suspect Sarah's clothes would be inside the safe with her stolen currency?

Perhaps LM orPT DNA on them, or as a Trophy for 2 psychopaths .Maybe Sarahs DNA from when she was strangled, vomit or Urine or both?

 

[inmyhumbleopinion]

Why do you suspect Sarah's clothes would be inside the safe with her stolen currency?

The information comes from previous reports:

“Relying on Mr. Taylor’s confession, the police have recovered two buried safe boxes, one in Sandy Hook containing about $7,000 and another in Shark River Park containing Ms. Stern’s clothing.“ (BBM)
They Helped Look for Her. Now They’re Accused in Her Murder.

“Taylor later confessed to the killing, bringing authorities to two buried safes in Sandy Hook and Shark River Park in Wall. Authorities said one contained the cash from the robbery and another had pieces of Stern's clothing.“ (BBM)
A year later, Sarah Stern's dad reflects on loss

I’m not sure why the evidence hasn’t been presented yet.

Perhaps LM talks about the clothes in his confession, and the prosecution is going to introduce the evidence at the same time as the tape that his friend recorded:

“Liam McAtasney first told Anthony Curry about his plans to rob and murder former high school classmate Sarah Stern on Thanksgiving night, 2016.

[SBM]

McAtasney even told Curry that he and his roommate, Preston Taylor, had taken ‘trial runs’ over the bridge to practice disposing of the body without being detected, the court papers said.

[SBM]

Then, when McAtasney contacted him to ask if police had spoken with him about Stern’s disappearance, Curry began to suspect that McAtasney had actually gone through with his ghastly plan, prosecutors said in their court papers.

[SBM]

‘A.C. wanted to participate,’ [Detective Brian] Weisbrot [of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office] testified at a hearing before Superior Court Judge Richard W. English on Jan. 10. ‘A.C. was terrified of Liam McAtasney. He felt if he didn’t participate in this, Liam McAtasney would kill him or hurt his family.’

Curry proceeded to communicate with McAtasney, saving their exchanges of Snapchat and text messages for detectives to review.

[SBM]

The pair then exchanged Snapchat messages and agreed to meet later that night in Bradley Beach.

That’s where McAtasney is said to have told Curry that he planned Stern’s murder for six months, that he choked her for a half hour while her dog watched her die, that he stole the victim’s safe and that he did, in fact, throw her body off the bridge with Taylor's assistance, according to the court papers.

McAtasney’s words and image were unwittingly being recorded by Curry.

[SBM]”
Ruling on covert Sarah Stern murder confession on the docket