FedEx driver who murdered 7-year-old Athena Strand sentenced to death as family speak out in court
William Morgan
Featured Image Credit: Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News via Getty Images
The delivery driver who kidnapped, abused, and fatally strangled seven-year-old Athena Strand was sentenced to death on Tuesday, after he was told that he will 'face the wrath of God' by the girl's family.
FedEx employee Tanner Horner, 34, will now likely face death by lethal injection for his sickening and heartbreaking crime in November 2022, when he kidnapped young Athena in his delivery van and later dumped the child's naked corpse in a ravine.
Since April 7, a Fort Worth court has heard the sentencing arguments laid out by prosecutors after Horner pleaded guilty just before his trial started. In laying out the case against him, the local DA told jurors to 'buckle up' before hearing 'what a 250-pound man can do to a 67-pound child'.
Jurors deliberated for just two-and-a-half hours before delivering their verdict, with an option on the table to lock Horner behind bars for the rest of his life without parole. But after 19 days of expert testimony and harrowing evidence, the Texas jury chose the death penalty.
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Over the past month, they had watched and heard evidence captured inside Horner's van of horrors as he carried out his sickening attack, including a chilling image of Athena stood up in the back of his vehicle captured before he covered the security camera.
However, the recording equipment was still capturing audio. More than an hour of it. Something the jury were forced to sit through, causing some to break down in tears and sending some in the public gallery to leave the courthouse.
That recording tragically showed Athena asking the FedEx driver 'Are you a kidnapper?' as she is driven away, which Horner does not respond to. Instead, he covered the camera and said: "You’re really pretty. You know that?"
Jurors then heard him stop the vehicle and tell the child to take off her shirt, when she refused and asked for her mom, Horner could be heard slamming her into the bed of his truck, the New York Post reports.
As Athena's screams filled the courtroom, Horner was heard telling her to be quiet or he would hurt her 'worse'. But Horner's violence did not stop there, instead taking on a new horrifying angle as 'Jingle Bell Rock' began playing on the radio.
Horner then began singing along as he strangled the seven-year-old girl.
Although Horner had admitted to kidnapping and killing Athena, he had denied throughout to sexually assaulting her. Something that experts in court disproved after showing that his reproductive DNA had been found around her genitals.
This was then supported by the testimonies of other people who had been sexually abused by the FedEx driver in the past, with two young women and a man coming forward to share their stories with the jury.
The only defense proffered by Horner in court was that he has an autism spectrum disorder and struggles with his mental health. A suicide note written in jail before an unsuccessful attempt, the delivery driver blamed FedEx for changing up his route in the weeks before his attack.
"The level of pain, the level of abuse that [Horner] has inflicted upon this little girl and this family are unfathomable," the prosecution told jurors before their deliberations. "The level of lies, the multiple different versions of whatever truth it is, that video.
"Everything you saw is important. Athena is important. Justice for her is important. And justice in this case has one result."
After his death sentence was handed down, Elijah Strand, Athena's uncle, gave a brutal dressing down to her killer, telling Horner in court: "You are nothing - you are a footnote in Athena's story.
"Her name will forever be remembered, her name will forever be celebrated, and everyone will forget you."
He added: "Athena was more than a headline. She was laughter, curiosity, kindness and innocence. And she had dreams that she will never get to chase, birthdays that she will never celebrate and a life she'll never get to live, because of his actions."
Remaining emotionless throughout, at the end of proceedings Horner indicated to the judge that he would be appealing his death sentence.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues or want to speak to someone in confidence regarding the welfare of a child, the Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline (1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and receives calls from throughout the United States, Canada, US Virgin Islands, Guam and Puerto Rico.
If you have experienced a child bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact The Compassionate Friends on (877) 969-0010.