A Texas man is facing the death penalty for the murder of Athena Strand, who had gone missing from her home in November 2022. Tanner Lynn Horner, 35, was set to go to trial, but ahead of the jurors being shown the photo of the 7-year-old in the back of his FedEx van, he abruptly pleaded guilty to capital murder.

Horner was charged with aggravated kidnapping and capital murder of a person under 10 years old. He pleaded guilty to the charges after one day of trial, so now, the jury will only be tasked with determining if he should be sentenced to death for his horrific crimes.

Murder of Athena Strand

Athena lived with her father and stepmother at the time of her kidnapping. She had been sorting through laundry in a storage shed that was converted into a bedroom for her and her sister. Athena’s stepmother, Elizabeth Strand, called the police at approximately 6:41 p.m. when she could not find the child.

An investigation revealed that a FedEx package was delivered around the time Athen went missing. Investigators dug deeper and found the package was delivered by one of FedEx’s contractors, Big Topspin. They obtained video footage from inside the van that delivered the package, showing a young girl talking to the driver, later identified as Horner.

Authorities confronted Horner, who allegedly admitted to kidnapping Athen and confessed that she was dead. He said she accidentally hit her head while in the van, and although she was not hurt, he was afraid she would tell her father, so he panicked. He decided then to kill Athena. 

“When he attempted to break Athena’s neck, it did not work, so he strangled her with his bare hands in the back of the FedEx van,” the arrest affidavit read.

Horner allegedly guided the police to the area where Athena’s lifeless body was found in water, approximately 15 miles away.

Opening Statements

During opening statements on Monday, Prosecutor Patrick Berry warned the jury that the testimony and evidence would be brutal. He told them that Horner was contracted to deliver packages and came across Athena, whom he kidnapped and senselessly murdered in his van.

“You’re gonna hear what a 250-pound man can do to a 67-pound child,” Berry said. “And when I say it’s horrible, I mean it. I’ve been doing this 25 years, and I promise you: buckle up.”

Berry informed jurors that they will be shown a video inside the van where Athena was killed, and while the image is obstructed, you can hear the audio clearly. “The one thing you’re gonna hear — that is something you can’t unhear — is the level of fight that a 7-year-old girl has when she’s facing down certain death,” Berry said. 

“We talk about warriors in America. I’ll tell you that little girl right there is a warrior. She fought with the strength of 100 men.”

Emotional Testimony

Elizabeth “Ashley” Strand, Athena’s stepmother, was the first to report the little girl missing. She took the stand and was clearly emotional throughout when she told the Court that her now 14-year-old daughter runs and hides when she sees a delivery driver passing. The other daughter also suffers from nightmares from the incident.

Then-Sheriff Lane Akin took the stand to describe the onset of the search for Athena. He got choked up as he testified to when he was faced with the Strand family and having to tell them their little girl’s body was only 15 miles away in a body of water.

“It was heartbreaking, and they were just devastated,” Akin said. “I wish I could have done something to make it better. We were hoping, right to the last minute, that she was alive and well.”

FBI Special Agent Patrick McGuire testified that Horner told investigators several different stories, ranging from that he did not remember the house to abandoning his deliveries that afternoon because he was sick. The package he delivered to the Strand house, the one containing Barbies for the girls, was the last one of the day, but he never marked it as delivered.

Plea for Mercy

Horner’s defense attorney used his opening statement to detail the personal issues of the defendant and plead for his mercy. He said that Horner was born to an exotic dancer who drank heavily while pregnant and that he was exposed to lead as a boy. He also said Horner struggled with mental illness all his life, and ironically, that is why he should be given leniency in his sentencing.

Jurors should keep in mind that Athena did not receive leniency or compassion when she was kidnapped and brutally murdered for no reason other than the man responsible did not want to get in trouble. The penalty phase is expected to last about two weeks before the jury will deliver its verdict.