BREAKING NEWS Teen arrested after paddleboarder's body washed up in small New England town and sparked serial killer fears

Daily Mail​

17-07-2025

A teenager has been arrested in connection with the murder of a paddleboarder who washed up dead on the shore of a Maine nature reserve earlier this month, horrifying locals and quietly stoking fears of a lurking serial killer.
Sunshine Stewart, 48, was found dead in the early hours of July 3 after she set off for a solo paddleboarding excursion in Crawford Pond hours earlier but never returned home.
For two weeks, Stewart's cause of death remained undisclosed as police safeguarded crucial details in their investigation as they hunted for her killer. On Thursday, authorities confirmed that Stewart died from strangulation and blunt force trauma.
A 17-year-old male was taken into custody on Wednesday night without incident and is currently being held at the Long Creek Youth Development Center. In keeping with state law, the suspect has not been publicly identified because he's a minor.
However, the teen is from Maine and came to Crawford Pond with his family, where they often spend the summer vacationing, a source familiar with the investigation revealed to the Daily Mail.
Stewart, from Tenants Harbor, had been planning to spend her summer the same way. At the time of her death, she was staying at the nearby Mic Mac Campground in Union, having arrived just days earlier.
The tragedy left residents of the small, tight-knit community of Union terrified.
Among them was Meredith Smith, a childhood friend of Stewart's, who told the Daily Mail the news of the teen's arrest has left her both stunned and concerned.
'Part of me is relieved that someone has been arrested, but the other part says this is far from over because I feel like there's still so much more to this story that we don't know,' said Smith.
'Sunshine was strong and feisty; she would've put up a fight. I have a gut feeling more than one person was involved in this, and that's why police have said this individual has been arrested 'in connection' with her murder, rather than outright charged.'
Maine State Police have not yet returned a Daily Mail request for comment about the status of their investigation and whether additional suspects are being sought.
Stewart was last seen leaving her camper at the Mic Mac Campground to go paddleboarding on the pond at around 6pm on July 2.
When she had still not returned by the early hours of July 3, someone raised the alarm.
Before dawn broke, a search and rescue drone spotted Stewart's paddleboard drifting alone.
Her body was later discovered along the southeast shore of 100 Acre Island, a nature preserve in the middle of the pond.
Police have not confirmed any details of how Stewart's body was found, or in what condition, sharing only that the circumstances were 'unusual.'
An autopsy determined that Stewart's death was a homicide, but law enforcement shared few updates over the following two weeks.
Smith told the Daily Mail on Monday that she was struggling to understand why anyone would harm her.
'Everyone who knew her loved her,' she said. 'Who would do something like this to her? She didn't have any enemies… there's nothing she could've done to make anybody mad enough to harm her.
'We're all on edge, it's just so scary… if it can happen to her, it can happen to anyone.'
Local police urged residents of Union to remain calm but be 'aware of their surroundings'.
On Wednesday, it was revealed that Maine State Police were collecting DNA samples from men who were near Crawford Pond on the night Stewart vanished, as first reported by the Midcoast Villager.
It's unclear whether the arrest of the teen came as a result of DNA.
Smith told the Daily Mail that the news of the DNA collection has made her fear what it may indicate about Stewart's final moments of life.
'I feel like it's insinuating something that they're only taking DNA from men and not women,' she said. 'It makes you wonder whether there may be a sexual motive to the crime or if they found something very specific at the crime scene.'
Smith added: 'You wonder, could this have been done by someone that was obsessed with her? Or maybe it was completely random and she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.'
'I just know she would've fought like hell. She was a strong person and would have given them a tough fight because she was feisty.'
With police offering little in the way of updates until Thursday, the radio silence caused rumors, conspiracies, and fear to prosper in the small town of Union.
News of Stewart's death renewed fears that a serial killer could be preying on victims across New England undetected, following a string of unexplained deaths.
At least 13 bodies have been discovered throughout Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Maine since March 2025, with the majority of them found in wooded or secluded areas and some submerged in water.
Most of the deaths are unexplained, with many of the victims showing no visible signs of trauma.
Law enforcement in multiple states has repeatedly denied any confirmed link between the cases and urged the public to refrain from jumping to conclusions and peddling baseless speculation.
Various experts have also claimed there are no consistent patterns between the crimes, with victim profiles, locations of the deaths, and suspected causes too varying to be the work of one person.
Still, some residents in Union feared the worst.
'People are definitely having that conversation, but for me it feels a little farfetched,' Smith said on Monday.
'When you look at where Sunny was killed, it's secluded and unless you're really familiar with the area, you're unlikely to know how to get to Crawford Pond.'
'I highly doubt it was a serial killer, but it was clearly somebody that wasn't right in the head… and the idea that this person may still be nearby makes me feel very uneasy.'
Union is a sleepy hamlet where most residents know each other - the kind of place where people rarely lock their doors.
But since Stewart's murder, Smith said she keeps her door firmly bolted and also often catches herself glancing over her shoulder or eyeing unfamiliar faces with suspicion.
Smith told the Daily Mail she submitted a tip to investigators regarding two 'fisherman' who she believes were at Crawford Pond on the night Stewart set off on her paddleboarding trip.
On Thursday, she urged police to follow up on that lead and fully investigate whether anyone else could be involved in Stewart's death.
In the meantime, Smith continues to grieve the loss of her friend, who was a carpenter, marine biologist, lobsterman, bartender, and boat captain.
Smith said: 'She was a force of nature who was strong-willed, independent, outgoing, and adventurous. She had a smile and a laugh that was so contagious.
'Sunny was a free-bird spirit who loved what she did and was just living day-to-day enjoying her life… It's devastating.'
Investigators are asking anyone who saw Stewart paddling on the evening of July 2 to reach out to the Maine State Police at 207-624-7076.
Nearby residents with security cameras are also being urged to contact police.