(NewsNation) — The death of a paddleboarding woman has shocked the community of Union, Maine, including one of her longtime friends.
Sunshine Stewart’s body was found July 3 near 100 Acre Island in the town of Union, Maine — the night after she went out alone on her paddleboard. Stewart’s longtime friend Meredith Smith joined “Banfield” on Friday night to discuss the sort of person she was and the ongoing homicide case.
Smith described Steward as a “very vibrant person, outgoing, silly at times, strong-willed, independent, adventurous; she was just an overall great person.
“Nobody wants to hurt Sonny,” Smith said.”That’s the scary part about it, because she had a lot of friends all over the world.
“There’s nobody that would want to hurt her. So that, like I said, is scary for everybody else around here, because, you know, if that can happen to someone like her, then it can definitely happen to anybody.”
Smith added she was very familiar with the lake and surrounding areas after growing up there. Her “gut feel” is that someone local to the area or who frequently visits the campground could be the killer.
“I don’t think that it was a target on her, I think. Maybe it was just something random that happened to her, or maybe somebody was fixing on her. I just, I have no idea. It just doesn’t make any sense at all,” she said.
Police have not spoken with Smith, who passed on the names of two individuals she believes were at the campground on the night Stewart was paddleboarding.
“It’s a lot of seasonal campsites, very friendly, very tight-knit group. I mean, there are a few others that come in, you know, of course, from out of state,” Smith said of the campground.
“It’s a really great place, and everybody’s really relaxed and really kind, and you would never suspect anything going on down there like that.”
Stephen Betts, a reporter for the Midcoast Villager, told “Banfield” that Stewart’s death is “unsettling” as police remain tight-lipped with their ongoing investigation.
“This is extremely rare. I’ve been covering the news in this area, the whole county, for 44 years, and not once have we had a homicide where it’s not within a day or so clear on who did it,” he said.
“This is a first case where there seems to be no reason behind it, and of course, there’s no suspect been named, so it’s left people fearful.”