Athena Strand – update: Suspect Tanner Horner’s chilling Instagram posts emerge as motive for murder unclear - The Independent

Everything we cognize astir FedEx operator accused of murdering Athena Strand

According to Wise County Jail records, 31-year-old Tanner Horner was booked astatine 2am connected Friday connected 1 number of superior execution of a idiosyncratic nether 10 and aggravated kidnapping.

His enslaved was acceptable astatine $1.5m.

Mr Horner has worked arsenic an Uber driver, according to reports, and posted connected societal media astir being a musician.

Here’s everything we cognize astir the case:

Andrea Blanco6 December 2022 03:10

ICYMI: A timeline of Athena’s Strand disappearance and execution probe

Athena was past seen live astatine her location connected the 200 Block of County Rd 3573 successful Paradise, astatine astir 5.40pm connected Wednesday.

Her stepmother reported her missing astir an hr later, sparking a monolithic hunt involving aggregate local, authorities and national instrumentality enforcement agencies who utilized canine units and helicopters with thermal imaging.

Wise County Sheriff Lane Akin announced astatine a precocious nighttime property league connected Friday that Athena’s assemblage had been recovered and a FedEx operator Tanner Horner had been arrested.

The fishy allegedly confessed to abducting Athena and murdering her astir an hr aboriginal earlier disposing of her body, Mr Akin told reporters.

Andrea Blanco6 December 2022 01:40

Tanner Horner’s neighbours ‘shocked’ by accusations

Tanner Lynn Horner’s neighbours person shared their daze and fearfulness astatine the quality that helium is suspected of sidesplitting Athena Strand.

The neighbours said that Mr Horner lived with his grandma and parent successful the westbound Fort Worth neighbourhood and that helium would permission for weeks astatine a clip earlier returning home.

Io Dodds6 December 2022 00:07

Mother of Athena Strand says her ‘princess’ was taken by a ‘cruel monster’

The heartbroken parent of Texas schoolgirl Athena Strand has described the fishy who allegedly confessed to her execution arsenic a “sick, cruel monster”.

In a Facebook station connected Saturday, Athena’s parent Maitlyn Gandy wrote that she was struggling to picture “the symptom and implicit anger” that she felt towards the alleged killer.

“My princess was taken from maine from a sick, cruel monster for perfectly nary reason,” she wrote on with a location video taken of Athena aged three.

“Athena is innocent, beautiful, kind, intelligent, and conscionable the brightest, happiest psyche you could ever meet. I don’t privation her to beryllium the miss known arsenic the 1 murdered and discarded by a monster.

“I privation everyone to know, each azygous idiosyncratic successful this world, that this is my babe and my babe was taken from me.”

The Independent’s Bevan Hurley has the story:

Andrea Blanco6 December 2022 00:05

Sheriff describes probe arsenic “one of the toughest”

In a precocious nighttime property league connected Friday, Wise County Sheriff Lane Akin announced that authorities had taken a FedEx declaration operator into custody.

Investigators had determined that Tanner Horner, 31, had made a drop-off adjacent the household location astir the clip Athena went missing.

Mr Akin said the operator had allegedly confessed to taking Athena and shown them wherever her assemblage could beryllium found, successful a ditch astir six miles retired of Paradise.

They believed she had died wrong an hr of her abduction, but did not supply further details connected however she was killed.

“It’s 1 of the toughest investigations I person been progressive successful due to the fact that it’s a child,” Mr Akin said astatine the property conference, according to Fox4.

“Any clip there’s a kid that dies it conscionable hits you successful your heart.”

Andrea Blanco5 December 2022 22:40

Chilling opus lyrics written by fishy accused of Athena’s murder

Tanner Lynn Horner, 31, is accused of snatching small Athena from her location successful Paradise, Texas, earlier sidesplitting her and dumping her assemblage successful a ditch astir six miles away. Police said that helium confessed to the heinous transgression and is being held connected charges of superior execution and kidnapping.

Following his arrest, the aspiring musician’s acheronian opus lyrics and disturbing societal media posts person emerged.

In 1 Instagram station from December 2014, helium wrote: “Sometimes I perceive her cries. Silence is the dirtiest instrumentality successful life. If im truthful bare past wherefore bash I consciousness alive.”

The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the afloat story:

Andrea Blanco5 December 2022 21:14

Everything we cognize astir Tanner Horner, the FedEx operator accused of abducting and murdering Athena

On Friday, authorities announced they had taken a FedEx transportation operator into custody who had been astatine Athena’s location astatine the clip of her disappearance.

Wise County sheriff Lane Akin told reporters that the driver, 31-year-old Tanner Lynn Horner, had allegedly confessed to her abduction and murder.

Here’s everything we cognize astir the fishy and the case:

Andrea Blanco5 December 2022 20:09

Grieving parent shares heartbreaking video of murdered 7-year-old’s sister sobbing

Athena’s parent Maitlyn Presley Gandy posted the video to Facebook connected Monday, 3 days aft her kid was recovered dormant successful Paradise, Texas. The small miss was reported missing connected Wednesday (30 November) and fishy Tanner Lynn Horner is present charged with her abduction and murder.

Ms Gandy explained that the video of her different girl sobbing uncontrollably for her “sissy” was taken days earlier Athena went missing, arsenic the seven-year-old was visiting her begetter successful Texas. At the time, Ms Gandy said she assured the unconsolable miss that her sister would beryllium backmost with them successful Oklahoma soon.

“That video of [redacted] begging for her sissy was Sunday 11/27 erstwhile we thought sissy would lone beryllium gone a fewer days. I kept telling her, ‘it’s okay, we volition spot sissy soon,’ not knowing however twisted our lives would become,” Ms Gandy wrote.

The Independent has the story:

Andrea Blanco5 December 2022 19:05

Athena Strand’s gramps says helium forgives ‘psycho’ FedEx operator accused of abducting and murdering her

The devastated gramps of murdered seven-year-old Athena Strand has said that helium forgives the “psycho” FedEx operator accused of abducting and sidesplitting her – but besides wishes helium could person “five minutes unsocial successful a cell” with the suspect.

“This flesh, this antheral that I am, is aggravated and I privation 5 minutes unsocial successful a compartment with the psycho that took our Athena distant from us, but there’s a brushed gentle dependable successful the backmost of my caput telling maine I request to forgive him,” helium wrote.

Read the afloat story:

Andrea Blanco5 December 2022 18:23

Community wears pinkish successful enactment of Athena

Area schoolhouse districts volition deterioration pinkish successful enactment of Athena Strand, her household and the section community.

Athena’s mother’s Facebook leafage has besides been flooded with comments and pictures of mothers and kids crossed Texas and the state wearing pinkish successful tribute of the seven-year-old miss killed connected Wednesday.

“I enactment my small miss successful pinkish contiguous for Athena. She said “my favourite colour is pinkish too, we could person been friends” I’m praying truthful hard for you. And I’m truthful so sorry,” a parent wrote.

Andrea Blanco5 December 2022 16:51

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