A New Jersey man convicted of strangling a childhood friend

A New Jersey man faces life imprisonment after a jury found him guilty of strangling his former classmate in high school and throwing his body off a bridge.

Liam McAtasney, 21, was convicted of the murder of 19-year-old Sarah Stern in Neptune City, New Jersey in December 2016. She was also robbed, desecrated, killed, conspiracy to desecrate human remains and obstruction of apprehension.

The Monmouth County Jury began its deliberations on Monday and asked to review a secretly recorded conversation in which McAtasney had spoken of Stern's death with a friend, Anthony Curry.

McAtasney told Curry in the video that he "had pretty much hanged [Stern]"Then stuck a shirt in the victim's throat and placed his finger on his nose.

"It took me half an hour to kill her," said McAtasney, who added that he had "programmed a timer," and claimed that Stern's dog "was lying on the spot and watched my death. "

THE NEW JERSEY FAMILY TERRORIZED BY THE WATCHER & # 39; S 'OPEN ON CREEPY ORDEAL

McAtasney also said that although he got rid of his crime with $ 10,000, he was hoping for more.

"I thought I was going to have between $ 50,000 and $ 100,000 in my pocket, she had a safe in which she was withdrawing money and she only had $ 10,000," she said. McAtasney, who told Curry that the money was of a "mediocre quality … I do not even know if I can put in the f —— bank."

Defense lawyer Carlos Diaz-Cobo, who vowed to appeal Tuesday's verdict, said the description of Stern's death was a complicated lie that McAtasney had recounted to impress Curry, a filmmaker. Amateur horror.

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McAtasney's roommate, Preston Taylor, testified that he had helped the suspect to throw Stern's body from the bridge in Belmar and to leave Stern's car nearby with the key inside for that it's like a suicide.

The defense asserted that there was no material evidence against McAtasney, who refused to testify in his defense.

Stern's body has never been found. McAtasney must be sentenced on May 24.

Kathleen Joyce of Fox News and the Associated Press contributed to this report.