Athena Strand: FedEx driver admitted strangling 7-year-old after hitting her with van, says warrant - The Independent

A FedEx operator admitted to kidnapping and strangling 7-year-old Athena Strand aft helium deed the kid with his van arsenic helium made a transportation astatine her Texas home, according to a recently released apprehension warrant.

Tanner Horner told investigators that though Athena was not severely wounded erstwhile helium backed into her, helium panicked and grabbed her arsenic helium was acrophobic she would archer her begetter what had happened, according to the warrant, which was obtained by The Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Mr Horner is accused of murdering the kid connected 30 November, portion her assemblage was recovered connected 2 December from a determination astatine the borderline of the Trinity River successful Wise County that helium gave to police.

The apprehension warrant states that video from wrong the FedEx van the fishy was driving, confirmed that helium had taken the kid earlier her death.

Mr Horner past told investigators that helium archetypal tried unsuccessfully to interruption her neck, earlier strangling her to decease with his bare hands successful the backmost of his transportation van.

The 31-year-old from Fort Worth, Texas, was arrested connected 2 December and is being held connected a $1.5m enslaved successful the Wise County Jail. He faces charges of superior execution of a idiosyncratic nether 10 years aged and aggravated kidnapping.

Wise County Sheriff Lane Akin has said that helium and prosecutors person discussed pursuing the decease punishment penalty if Mr Horner is convicted astatine trial.

Athena’s mother, Maitlyn Gandy, has said that the fishy was astatine the location of her ex-husband to present a bundle of Barbie dolls arsenic a Christmas acquisition for Athena.

Investigators discovered during their hunt for the then-missing miss that FedEx had delivered a bundle astir the clip that the kid had disappeared, the warrant states.

They worked with Big Topspin, a contractor for FedEx who the fishy worked for, and determined which FedEx van and operator had made the delivery.

Investigators past obtained video footage from cameras wrong the van, which the warrant says showed the fishy talking to Athena aft helium grabbed her.

When a sheriff’s bureau researcher and a Texas Ranger interviewed the fishy helium told them that she was dead, though she had been live erstwhile helium took her and gave him her name.