The Accomplice

listen to and follow Bridge of Lies on Amazon Music,

“or just ask Alexa, play the podcast Bridge of Lies on Amazon Music.”

Also with Amazon Music Unlimited, you can now listen to your favorite music, podcasts and audiobooks all in the Amazon Music app. Just a warning before we get started. This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence. It's the afternoon of February 1st, 2017.

Police officers are stationed outside a home in Neptune City, New Jersey. Just blocks from Sarah Stern's house. Since the morning, they've been watching a blueish gray, two-bedroom house, or two young men live. Detective Brian Weissbrot says they know one of them has a two-o-clock class

at Brookdale Community College.

“And detectives who are conducting surveillance had seen him leave his house”

with what appeared to be books in his hand, given to his vehicle, and travel away from the home. Just a day earlier, during an undercover operation, Liam McItazney described on tape how he says he murdered Sarah Stern. But Liam is not to the officers' targeting.

During the sting, Liam named an accomplice. So Preston came over to the body, put it in the bushes.

That was the first time that Preston Taylor was implicated in the crime.

Preston Taylor is Liam's friend and roommate. He'd also been Sarah's friend. Weissbrot says investigators want to bring him to the police station for questioning. They want to find out if he'll talk, if he'll turn on Liam. So they plan to pull Preston over, as he leaves the house, he lives in with Liam,

and drives to class in his black 1996 Mercury Mystique. Detective Weissbrot calls one of the other officers he's been working with, Detective Nick Catalona, to fill him in on this major step in the investigation. Brian called me and said you wouldn't believe what's going on and I'm like, uh, trying me, um, he goes, I need you to go to the address and tint and falls. We stopped Preston.

Suddenly, the case, which had been at a standstill for so many weeks, has rapid high speed momentum. A lot of, kind of disbelief that it just all unraveled the way it did as fast as it did. Once we stopped his car, uh, we detained Preston and transported him to the mom and county prosecutor's office. They bring Preston into a small interview room, which is outfitted with video cameras

recording everything. He's tall, six foot five, wearing a black sweater. Detective Weissbrot and another investigator are there, too. The three men crowd around a circular table and Preston sits back in his chair with his hands folded in his lap.

I first just want to tell you, thank you for cooperating coming down today to talk to us.

We appreciate I know you did. Detective Weissbrot reads Preston, his Miranda writes, "The right to remain silent, the right to an attorney, and then he cuts right to the chase." We know what happened to Sarah. We know what your involvement in it was. All right, we want to talk to you about that. What we're most interested in knowing, not necessarily what happened because we already know that. We want to know why it happened.

We want to know why Liam did what he did. Preston does not remain silent. He does not ask for an attorney. He looks right at detective Weissbrot

“and asks. What did he do? He kills Sarah. Okay, can we know you know that?”

Okay, you know that. Correct? Yes. Correct. Yes. Correct. Preston doesn't try and leverage what he knows for a deal with investigators. Like Liam sitting in Anthony Curry's car, Preston decides to let it all spill out. Starting with, yes, Liam killed Sarah. What was interesting about Preston's interview is that he just wanted confirmation that we knew that Liam had killed Sarah. And when I told him Liam killed Sarah,

that was enough for Preston. Preston realized at that point, obviously, that we knew what had transpired. Prosecutor Chris Decker is watching the interview from another room. I don't know if I've ever seen anyone confess that quickly. And then he just goes on for, you know, fifty two pages or something in a transcript of describing everything that they did. Preston had once been Sarah's junior prom date.

with his arm around her as she wears a white off the shoulder dress. Now, he was sitting in a room with detectives telling them that his Sarah's community and family desperately searched for her, he had known all along that she was not coming home. But police have a lot more to learn from Preston.

“How long did Liam plan this brutal betrayal of their childhood friend? Why did Liam kill Sarah?”

Why did Preston go along with it? And what happened to Sarah's body? From ABC Audio and 2020, I'm Judy Chang, and this is Bridge of Lies. Episode five, The Accompless. You're a 19-year-old kid. You have a whole life ahead of you. You got to lay it out for us. That's the why it happened. Why did what he did? Preston speaks quietly,

almost mumbling. There is no emotion in his voice as he gives a one-word answer. Money. He says Liam murdered his childhood friend for money. How much money are we talking about? According to Preston, Liam thought she had anywhere from 50 to 150 grand.

“He wanted to try and say as much as possible. Okay. Did he tell you,”

I had a time that he was going to do this? Yeah. Preston says Liam came into a bar one day and started talking about Sarah's money. Then, about a month or two later, according to Preston, Liam came up with a plan to kill her and steal it. What did he tell you he planned not doing? Taking her out and letting him put somewhere to the spot. When you say "cake me around" we've been

straight away. Preston keeps looking at the detectives, sitting up straight in his chair, as he details Liam's violent plot to murder Sarah. Preston says that on the day Sarah was murdered, he was working construction with his dad. He got home just as Liam was leaving for his job, waiting tables at the steakhouse. He was like, dude, I did it. When he said that he did it,

“did you know what that meant? Yeah, what did you take that to me? That's what I wanted to see.”

He killed Sarah. Okay. So, the her body was still at the house. I mean, he needs to learn a little bit.

When Preston was first interviewed by police in the days after Sarah disappeared,

his story almost entirely matched the one Liam told the police. He said Liam went to work as usual and when he got home, the two of them hung out at their house. The only discrepancy between their accounts was that Liam said he had a great workshop, and Preston said Liam had a bad night at the steakhouse. Otherwise, they were aligned. Now, Preston is completely changing his story. Step by step, he's corroborating what Liam told

Anthony Curry during the undercover operation about how Liam carried out his plan to murder Sarah and cover it up. Preston says, as Liam left for work, he sent him to Sarah's house with

two tasks. First, Liam had lost his phone there and asked Preston to search for it. And second,

Liam wanted Preston to move Sarah's body out of the house. So, the her and Graham are stopping by later. You know, there's why I had to meet him. When Preston got to Sarah's house, the son was starting to go down. He says he hadn't been to the house for years, but it hung out with friends there before. He entered the house through the unlocked back door and found Sarah in the bathroom. Did you see any blood? Did you see any bruising and he's

marks or anything on her body? She's starting to turn pale and like a whitish purple coat. But, could I bruise this right now? Preston says he looked around for Liam's phone,

but couldn't find it. According to investigators, the phone was ultimately found in Sarah's

driveway and given to police. After failing to find Liam's phone, Preston says he pulled Sarah out of the bathroom and hid her body in some bushes in the yard. And then what did you do?

and hid in her body. But that was not the end of Preston's night or the end of his involvement

and covering up Sarah's murder. According to Preston, there was much more to Liam's plan

“and he was a key part of it. He tells investigators he waited at home for Liam to return from work.”

According to Preston, Liam still planned to steal Sarah's money and get rid of her body. And Liam had carefully thought through how to do this. He knew there were surveillance cameras on the street, so Preston says they drove in his car to a street near Sarah's house and

parked at a dead end to avoid being captured by those cameras. At the house, Preston says he

looked for Liam's phone again while Liam went upstairs to take a safe from Sarah's room. This safe was what Liam had been after all along. Remember, according to Preston, Liam believed there could be 50 to 150 grand inside.

“Once Liam grabbed the safe, Preston says they left the house and moved Sarah's body from the”

bushes to the passenger seat of her car. Liam drove Sarah's car to the bridge and Preston followed behind. They used walkie talkies to communicate along the way because Preston says, "Liam thought it was a bad idea to use their phones." "Well, kind of thing is where you guys can't communicate about. They just said I'm coming up on the bridge and I said okay I'm coming up behind you and it's like I heard you up because I'm not because I can't get this over myself."

Preston says Liam needed help, dragging Sarah's body out of the car and pulling her over the bridge's railing, so he stopped his car and helped. Preston keeps his matter of fact tone, as he describes what it was like to throw his high school prom date into the shark river. No tears, no shaking in his voice, just the same steady drip of horrifying detail. Was that hard to do physically to get her over the bridge? Well, two people. Did you guys know

“when she had the water, did you hear anything or see anything? No, no. Then what happened after that?”

We got in my car, drove down, turned around, went back to the house. Back at their house, Preston says they drank and smoked weed. And then he was time to break open Sarah's safe and count their money. The whole reason for their betrayal. According to Preston, Liam did the counting. 10,000 dollars. Did you see the money? Can you describe it to us? What if it looked like

there was a lot of really old feet out in turn of money? And it was a lot less than they were expecting. Preston says Liam gave him 3 grand. He spent the money on weed. The money he says Liam had killed for. The money Preston had helped cover up a murder for. Preston had spent half of his share already to get high. Preston says Liam took the rest of the money and put it in a different safe he had. They buried that safe at one location. They put some of Sarah's clothes in her safe

and buried it in another spot. At this point, Preston has given investigators a play by play of the aftermath of Sarah's murder, but Detective Weissbrot has some bigger questions for him too. What are the other reasons why he chose Sarah other than the money? Is there a thrill

involved in it? Is there something he's always wanted to do? No, it was just for the money.

Okay, what do you need the money for? I heard just starting a move out and his entire show of friends. It's a pity only, buddy, buddy. I thought I knew that. During the whole interview, Preston has not shown

Detective Weissbrot wants to know more about Preston's mindset. How did he become an

“accomplice to murder? Were you supportive of him doing this, but you can get some of the money?”

I didn't really do that. I didn't have him to actually do it. I didn't have him to do it. I didn't have him to do it. I didn't have him to tell him like, "No, don't do it. I'm just upset. Don't do it. Very pale. How do you feel about it? We can have him to share it." I don't really know. Preston says. No emotions, no tears, no remorse. Nothing. What do you think about? I think about what it means for me,

to come back to us. Did you think it was gone to? Liam did a pretty good job with him, listening to that. She'd cover everything up. Just what happened. The investigators end their interview with Preston after nearly two hours. They tell him a prosecutor will make a decision about what to charge him with. But they're not done with Preston yet. They ask him to take them back to Sarah's house, back to the scene of the crime,

and show them exactly how Liam carried out this cold-blooded murder and covered it up. Let me just go get our bars ready and we'll take a ride. Thank you very much. 2020 is partnering with vibes open ear wireless headphones. That's Vy BZ. If you listen to a lot of true crime, you probably like to listen with a good pair of headphones. But it can be tricky to find a pair that provides great sound quality that's not too overwhelming. Because when you're

out with a podcast during a late night dog walk or pre-do on run, you don't necessarily want

“noise cancellation that blocks out the sounds around you. That's why you'll want to get yourself a pair”

of vibes. Your perfect companion in audio. They're designed for maximum comfort with ultra lightweight earbuds that sit just outside the ear canal. And they offer crystal clear audio. So no matter what you're listening to, whether it's your favorite song or a sound rich true crime podcast, it'll come across loud, clear and silky smooth. The battery lasts up to 10 hours per charge and they come in a range of sleek modern colors and styles. So what are you waiting for?

Order now and you'll be listening to better sound with better headphones before you know it. For a limited time, our listeners can get more than 60% off a pair of vibes wireless headphones. Just go to abcsecretsavings.com/2020. Again, that's abcsecretsavings.com/2020. ABCsecretsavings.com/2020. We invest in our careers, our finances, and our relationships, but when was the last time you invested in your health? Want to shut that extra weight?

Need more energy throughout the day? Want to finally crush that brain fog? That's where

goby meds can help. And here's the best part, unlike the other big medical weight loss in telehealth companies, goby meds has zero monthly membership fees. You pay for your treatment, not a subscription, no hidden costs, just transparent access to great care. And treatments, start at just $99 a month. The process is really simple. Fill out a quick consultation form, a licensed provider will review and ask any questions. And if approved, your medications will

be sent directly to your door. And you can do all of this from your phone. So stop settling for tired as your new normal. Go see what the best version of you actually feels like. Head to gobe meds.com. That's G-O-B-Y-M-E-D-S.com. Use code true crime for $25 off. Go be you with gobe meds.com. We gather here tonight to bring women back to their right full place. The Testaments, a new Hulu original series. From the executive producers of the

handmade stale. It's easier to accept a story than believe that the people around you are monsters.

“The battle isn't over. You're come to time. You have to take action. When you have to choose”

your own destiny. You never play as it's in. What's the new Hulu original series, the Testaments?

April 8th on Hulu and Hulu on Disney Plus for Bundle Subscribers, Terms of Fly. After Preston's confession, well into a bitter cold night, investigators drive him to Sarah's house. They bring video equipment and flashlights to navigate the dark. And they start recording when they arrive. Because Preston is about to walk them through everything that happened at the house. Today's date is February 1st, 2017. The approximate time

jacket. It's black with big yellow reflective strips on it that glow in the dark. Preston is also

“wearing a red baseball cap that says St. Louis. I'd parked my card just right over here and top”

the fence right here. Preston is more animated than during his interview at the station. He walks investigators into the house through the back door. The lights back here are off but the kitchen and living room lights were on. Okay. Then he takes them through some folding doors into the bathroom. Sarah was slumped in this corner right here. Do you recall what Sarah was wearing when you came into the house that day? That jean was on the black hoodie. Preston demonstrates how he

approached Sarah from behind. Looped his arms under her shoulders, lifted her up and dragged her backwards out of the house. So what a feat dragging on the ground? Yeah. Okay. And then I carried her

“over here and tried to over here and kind of sat her under the bushes right here.”

Preston points to some prickly evergreen bushes by the fence. He explains that when he came back hours later, he waited while Liam got Sarah's safe. Then Preston says Liam handed him the safe in the backyard and went out front to get Sarah's car from the driveway. Liam then pulled the car around and went to the fence to meet him. Preston says he lifted Sarah up and passed her over to Liam who then put her in the passenger seat of her car. Liam made the catering and took off.

He made her right and took some roundabout way of getting over to the bridge. Investigators can now visualize how Preston and Liam moved Sarah's body out of the house

“and into her car, which they would eventually abandon on the bridge. Preston also took police”

to where the two safe swarberied. First, he led them to a park by Sandy Hook Beach about 30 minutes

away. That's where investigators say Preston told them he and Liam buried the safe with Sarah's money in it. Detective Nick Catalona says they parked on a side road and walked up a steep hill overlooking an old mortar battery. There were four pits where the mortars, which looks sort of like cannons used to be stationed. So he walked us down the middle ridge of the four pit and then he pointed to an area in the north of the east corner and said down there is where we buried the safe and

we had to descend into the pit after that. Once we got to the area where he was pointing to, we started the photo and then we started digging and then as we were digging, we just happened to look just a little bit to the left of where we were digging and there's the corner of the safe just sticking out. Detective Catalona says the safe was discovered far from the park's popular areas. It's not something that you know, you could just easily just come across. So you could tell that

they'd meant for nobody to ever find this again. After finding that safe, Preston took investigators to shark River Park, just ten minutes from Sarah's house. They were looking for her safe, the one with her clothes in it. The park is nearly 1,000 acres and it took Preston an hour and a half to find the right location. They were out there for so long, investigators got him a burger and fries from McDonald's to eat for dinner. As Preston took some officers through the sprawling

park, Detective Weissbrot said another set of officers made the next big move in the case. They decided to bring Liam in. It had been nearly two months since Sarah disappeared and they were now ready to make an arrest for her murder. While we were in the park with him, Detective said stopped Liam's car and had arrested him at that point. After being arrested, Liam is brought to the same small room with the circular table that Preston had confessed in just hours earlier.

But Weissbrot says Liam doesn't know that. He had no idea. Are you being charged with murder,

felony murder, first to be robbery, dissipation of human remains, conspiracy, and hindering

an apprehension. Okay. All the other times, Liam had been questioned by the police,

Liam does not talk. He just responds by saying, he has an attorney.

Okay. And I'd rather not speak to anyone. Okay. So I'll talk to him. Great. By the end of the night, investigators have Liam and Preston in custody, a detailed account from Preston of how Sarah's body was moved from her home and thrown over the bridge and the two safes. They also searched Preston's car. Right next to the driver's seat between the emergency break and the center console was a

cobra brand a walkie-talkie, which was consistent what Preston told us that they used walkie-talkies to communicate. And they searched Liam's car. And after we searched his car, the keys for his car

“had a key. It was a key to the safe they had recovered from Sandy Hook. The one Preston said,”

he and Liam had put Sarah's money in. Inside, detectives found nearly $10,000 in cash.

The money was almost identical to the money in Sarah's safety deposit box at the bank. Dry rot, falling apart, stuck together, these bills and the bills that we found in Sarah's safety deposit box had to have at least been exposed to the same environmental conditions for the same relative period of time to exhibit the same sort of wear. Their next stop would be Liam's house. Back in December, they had knocked on his door in the middle of the night, hoping he could

help them find Sarah. Now, he was charged with her murder and they were continuing to build their case against him. They were also about to break the news to Sarah's dad that the investigation

had led them right back to where they started. With Sarah's childhood friend, the last person

to see her live. Sunday nights on ABC, what happens when the person you love the most turns out not to be who you think they are. Everything he told me was alive. I was portrayed from the number one true crime podcast, Betrayal.

“He's been living a secret double life. My marriage ended with a 9-1-1-4.”

The tape is blood curdling. Betrayal secrets and lies. So many people are living with their own betrayal. Sunday nights at 10-9 central on ABC and stream on Disney Plus and Moulou. The Hulu original series Love Overbore is now streaming on Hulu and Hulu on Disney Plus. 16 singles are headed to this super luxury yacht to fall in love.

I'm a romantic. I want to find love. This is going to be the best time I've ever lost. But whether you do not choose, we'll be going overboard. This is insane! Watch the new Hulu original series Love Overbore. Now streaming on Hulu and Hulu on Disney Plus for bundles of subscribers.

Terms of fly. I came home from work and I sort of making dinner. And I noticed there was a bright light coming from my backyard. This is Megan McItazney, Liam's mom. She spoke with ABC News in 2019.

And I looked at the back window and I thought Liam and his friends were shooting movie or video. And I decided to go back there and say hi to everybody. It was walking through my backyard and all of the men that were at the property were in street clothes. So I was trying to figure out who they were because I didn't recognize them.

“As Liam's friends and I remember joking and saying, "Hey guys, what are you up to back here?”

What are you shooting?" And then a detective yelled at me to stand back and at that point, I realized that people were going through my son's trash. They had gloves on. They were raiding my son's home. I asked where my son was and I was told, "Mom, you have to get back." She says she ran inside to call her lawyer. Liam's dad and pressed his mom. But none of them knew anything about what was happening.

And we didn't know where our place was. Detectives went through the two bedroom house. Liam and Preston lived it. Liam's bedroom was pretty neat and orderly. Preston's on the other hand was not. We searched the attic. We pulled up the insulation and the

they searched event and found a key to Sarah's safety deposit box at Carney Bank.

“Megan Liam's mom says she didn't know what was going on until the middle of the night.”

Emma's told what Liam was being charged with and my head was just spinning because I didn't understand what was happening and I just started calling family members and I didn't understand why. In every bone of my body, I did not believe Liam is capable of killing Sarah's turn who he loved in a door. I did not believe Liam is capable of killing anybody.

She described her son as a friendly person, a good brother to his identical twin and two younger

siblings and a loving, generous friend. I don't think Liam had an enemy. He just adores his friends.

“He would do anything for his friends. Take the shirt off the back, stop it. He was doing”

to go and help anybody that needed it. He was driving home from school and he saw somebody on the side of the room walking, he'd offer them a ride home. It had already been a tough week for Sarah's dad, Michael Stern. His mother-in-law had passed away and now, just days later, detectives were calling him about Sarah's case. It wasn't home and they said, well, we'd like to talk to you at the house and I said, okay, I'll see in 15 to 20 minutes and walked in and those detectives,

the police department, they were there and just sit down and want to tell you something.

“Michael says they told him that during an undercover sting, Liam had described Sarah's murder”

and it was all on tape, every awful detail. They just told me what was on there and they said it was just, you don't want to hear the details. He was shocked. He was sad. He couldn't believe the information that we were providing to him. He knew Liam acutized and he knew Liam acutatized his family, his mother. He had driven Liam to two and from school. Press and Taylor went to the problem with Sarah. He knew these people. Just can't imagine turning your back on somebody and

having them choke you and least leave you there. Now you never know who your friends are.

This was the ultimate in betrayal for a of a friendship. So I look at life differently. I look at people differently now. Nothing is as it was in my life and a lot of other family members too. Press and Taylor eventually cut a deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to robbery, conspiracy, disturbing or desecrating human remains, hindering apprehension and tampering with physical evidence. He also agreed to testify against Liam. In exchange, a felony murder charge against him,

which could have meant life without parole was dropped. His attorney at the time John Parone told ABC News in an interview in 2019 that Preston is a follower who was easily led. Just didn't sink in that. This was a plan that somebody's life was going to be taken until it actually happened. Preston was a scattered individual that did something wrong and helped somebody who did something even more breaches. Unlike Preston, Liam Maccatazzney pleaded not guilty

to the charges against him. So his case was going to trial. That meant Michael and all of Sarah's family and friends would have to face Liam in court and listen to the recording of him brazenly describing Sarah's murder. What would happen in the courtroom as Liam stood trial for the ultimate betrayal of his childhood friend. Prosecutors were heading into the trial

had not been found and the defense had found a surprise eyewitness. Someone who said he had seen

“Sarah the morning after her disappearance walking near the bridge. Would prosecutors be able to”

convict Liam or could he walk away a free man? Bridge of lives is a production of ABC audio

and 2020 hosted by me, Juju Chang, produced by Camille Peterson and Sabrina Fang,

fact-checking and production help from Audrey Mastek and Annalisa Lindor. Tracy Samuelson is our story editor, our supervising producer is Sasha Asliniam, music and mixing by Evan Biola, special

things to Katie Dendos, Janice Johnston, Joseph Diaz, Avery Brooke and Michelle Marulous.

Josh Cohen is our director of podcast programming. Aiman McNiv is our executive producer. From 30 for 30 podcasts. Ryan Pataf, Senior Defense of Lyman from Miami, gunned out.

“"The key to this case, it's Brian. All before he died, he was on a phone, argument about this might be a hit."”

"You want the truth, they just want to convict you in plastic arrest. We had a killer moxtice." "Murder at the you, listen now." "I have great news. Malcolm in the middle is back." "My life is fantastic now." "In a four-part event." "All I had to do is stay completely obeyed for my family." "Your biggest problem is that we exist." "Everyone invited to the campus, reunion of the year." "This family's behavior is toxic to me."

“"You'll just take turns fighting and creating disasters." "That's what families do”

." Malcolm in the middle, life's still unfair. From years Friday, April 10th on Hulu and Hulu on Disney Plus for bundle subscribers. Terms apply, ready TV 14-0.