BELMAR — The search for the body of Sarah Stern resumed Sunday morning, three days after authorities charged one of her former classmates with murder and her Junior prom date with helping to throw the body into the Shark River.
The New Jersey State Police Marine Unit is focusing its search on the Shark River inlet near the ocean but has not fanned out beyond that, State Police spokesman Trooper Alejandro Gomez said on Sunday.
He said he did not know on Sunday morning if the search would continue into the fourth day.
On Thursday, authorities announced Stern’s former Neptune High School classmate, Liam McAtasney, had strangled Stern, 19, at her Neptune City home on Dec. 2 in an attempt to rob her of thousands of dollars. McAtasney then called Preston Taylor, who was also a friend of Stern’s, to help him dispose of her body in the Shark River, authorities said.
On the morning of Dec. 2, Stern’s vehicle was found parked on the shoulder of the Route 35 bridge in Belmar, fully operational with the keys inside, authorities have said. Authorities searched the Shark River for one full day before calling it off.
Stern’s body was never found.
Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni said Friday at a press conference at the location of the search that he’s hoping for a miracle but conceded it would be tough given the swift tides out to the ocean.
“I freely admit it’s going to be difficult but we have some of the best and most dedicated law enforcement officers working on this,” he said. “We’ll hope for the best.”
Meanwhile, Stern’s father, Michael Stern, said in an interview with NJ Advance Media that finding Sarah’s body would help bring closure to his only daughter’s death.
“Without physically finding Sarah, it’s still difficult for me to process all this,” Stern said. “It’s a hard thing to go through. None of this makes sense.”
McAtasney and Taylor, both 19 of Neptune City, remain jailed at the Monmouth County Correctional Institute in Freehold. They will be back in court in the coming weeks.
McAtasney and Taylor were in Stern’s 2015 graduating class, and they were friends, posing for pictures together on social media and at the prom. Taylor went to Junior prom with Stern, her father has said.
The two even participated in a search for Sarah on Dec. 10.
Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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