On the surface, Alyssa Bustamante seemed like a typical teenager, described by friends as "sweet and likeable". But beneath the surface lurked a much darker personality, partially revealed through her online presence.

Alyssa experienced a troubled childhood. From 2002 to 2009, she was raised by her grandparents because both her parents were incarcerated for drug and alcohol abuse, and assault. Her grandparents eventually gained legal custody of Alyssa and her three siblings. Seeking a fresh start, they relocated from California to a farm in rural St. Martins, Missouri.

Despite her unstable family background, Alyssa excelled in high school, maintained positive relationships with her classmates, and actively participated in church activities.

However, in 2007, at the age of 13, Alyssa attempted suicide. After spending 10 days in a psychiatric hospital, she began taking antidepressants but continued to self-harm by cutting her wrists. Friends reported that Alyssa frequently showed them the scars on her wrists.

Online, Alyssa presented a different persona, expressing morbid interests, including a fascination with murderers. She also posted a video of herself attempting to electrocute her younger brothers by encouraging them to touch an electric fence.

At her 15th birthday party, while spending time with a close friend, Alyssa remarked, "I wonder what it would be like to watch someone die. I wonder what it would be like to take someone’s life".

On 21/10/2009, Alyssa turned her darkest fantasies into reality.

9-year-old Elizabeth Olten, who lived four houses away, frequently played with Alyssa and her siblings. On 21/10/2009, Elizabeth pleaded with her mother, Patricia Preiss, for permission to visit her neighbors.

The last time Patricia saw her daughter alive was at 5 PM that day. By 6 PM, when Elizabeth hadn't returned home for dinner as promised, Patricia called the Bustamante residence, only to be told that Elizabeth had not been there. Sensing something was wrong, she contacted the police.

The police called Elizabeth's phone, tracing its location to a wooded area between her house and the Bustamante home. Hundreds of police officers and local residents searched for Elizabeth for two days and nights amidst cold weather and pouring rain.

FBI agents questioned the Bustamante family and seized a diary from Alyssa's bedroom during a search of the house on 22/10. Authorities also discovered a shallow hole behind the Bustamante home, resembling a grave. The 15-year-old claimed she enjoyed digging holes and would bury dead animals she found.

During the investigation, police discovered another shallow grave covered with leaves in the woods behind Alyssa's house. Elizabeth's body was found beneath, strangled and stabbed.

When Alyssa was charged with first-degree murder and taken into custody, those who knew her were shocked. "Before all this happened, she was just a normal 15-year-old girl. This really isn't the Alyssa I know," a friend told the media.

However, a diary entry from the night of 21/10 revealed a chilling side of Alyssa that no one suspected. Although she attempted to conceal the entry by scribbling over it with blue ink, investigators were able to decipher the original text. In it, Alyssa detailed the attack on Elizabeth and the excitement she felt afterward.

"I don’t know what it feels like. Just you get past the ‘oh my gawd I can’t do this’ feeling. Now I’m kinda shaky and twitchy. I gotta go to church now lol," the diary read.

Alyssa Bustamante's diary entry from 21/10/2009, scribbled over with blue ink. Photo: Truecrimenews

Faced with the evidence, Alyssa confessed to the crime after more than two hours of questioning. According to her confession, she had dug two graves a week prior, then planned the attack. Upon seeing Elizabeth on the afternoon of 21/10, Alyssa decided Elizabeth would be her first victim. She asked her 6-year-old sister to invite Elizabeth over to play, then lured her into the woods under the pretense of a "surprise".

After committing the murder, Alyssa attended a youth dance at church while the search for the 9-year-old was underway. She stated her motive for the crime was "to see what it felt like".

Alyssa's grandmother, present during the confession, burst into tears and ran out of the room, overcome with shock.

Alyssa's lawyers sought leniency, citing her troubled childhood, lack of maturity, and depression. However, the judge ruled that she would be tried as an adult.

In 1/2012, weeks before her trial for first-degree murder was set to begin, Alyssa accepted a plea deal, pleading guilty to the lesser charge of second-degree murder to avoid the death penalty. As part of the agreement, she was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole, plus 30 years for armed criminal action.

Alyssa Bustamante in court in 2014. Photo: Truecrimenews

In 2014, Alyssa hired a new lawyer and attempted to withdraw her guilty plea and request a new trial, but the judge denied her request.

Grief-stricken by the loss of her daughter, Patricia Preiss called Alyssa an "evil monster" in court and argued that the original sentence was too lenient. She also sued Alyssa for damages in 10/2015, winning a $5 million judgment two years later. Alyssa is now required to pay $5 million plus 9% interest annually until the debt is paid.

Because she was a minor at the time of the crime, Alyssa is eligible for parole following a 2014 US Supreme Court ruling that no juvenile can be sentenced to life without parole – even for murder. However, Missouri lawmakers passed a bill in 2021 stating that the ruling does not apply to juveniles convicted of first-degree murder. In 2024, Governor Mike Parson signed the law, extending it to juveniles convicted of second-degree murder. Elizabeth's family supported the law.

In 2024, Alyssa was denied parole.

Tue Anh (according to ATI, People)