Teen arrested in connection with murder of Maine paddleboarder
A 17-year-old male from Maine was arrested Wednesday, July 16, at about 10:30 p.m. in connection with the investigation, Maine State Police said. The juvenile was arrested without incident in Union, which is about 25 miles east of Augusta, and is in custody at the Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland, Maine, police said.
The victim, Sunshine Stewart, 48, of Tenants Harbor, Maine, was reported missing after going paddleboarding on Crawford Pond in Union on July 2. Police found her body on July 3 during a search of the pond. Stewart's cause of death was strangulation and blunt force trauma, based on autopsy findings, police said.
Police had previously said an autopsy performed on July 3 resulted in death being ruled a homicide, MSP announced on July 7.
More news: Missing man's body found following Turks and Caicos disappearance
Maine paddleboarder's death remains 'active' investigation
The suspect had come to the Crawford Pond area for summer vacation time with his family, ABC News reported July 17 citing an official familiar with the investigation.
Stewart had rented a camp site at Mic Mac Family Campground near the pond starting at May 1, but had only stayed on the grounds for two or three nights before her disappearance, the owner of the campground told ABC News. The campground owner said she had given police several hours of video.
The investigation into Stewart's death is still "active and ongoing," police said. Anyone with information about the case should contact police at 207-624-7076.
The ongoing search for a suspect had brought "fear and discomfort" to the community, Maine State Police said in a Facebook post on July 9.
'The light in our lives'
A GoFundMe page was created by Stewart's family and friends for memorial arrangements and has raised over $30,000 dollars surpassing it's goal of $15,000. A write-up on the page states that Stewart was "the light in our lives" and they hope to "send her off the right way."
Contributing: Melina Khan.
Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider & msnider@usatoday.com
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