Two days after being reported missing, the body of 7-year-old Athena Strand was found on Friday evening, and a FedEx driver was arrested in relation to the crime, according to CNN.
The news: 31-year-old Tanner Lynn Horner was arrested on kidnapping and murder charges, The Associated Press reported, after confessing to the murder and leading authorities to find her body.
- Athena was reported missing on Wednesday from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and a tip led law enforcement to Horner, who had reportedly made a delivery to the Strand home on the day she disappeared, the AP continued.
Details: Horner is currently being held in jail for capital murder and aggravated kidnapping on a $1.5 million bond, said Wise County Sheriff Lane Akin, via ABC.
- Strand’s body was found by police southeast of Boyd, Texas, ABC continued. Digital evidence has led police to believe that she died within an hour of her abduction.
- In an interview with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Akin said that Horner did not know the family and described the incident as a crime of opportunity.
- “We do believe she died by his hand,” Akin stated to the Telegram, eliminating the possibility that she could have been hit by the delivery truck.
- According to The Associated Press, authorities have not yet disclosed a motive from Horner.
- The Fort Worth Star-Telegram added that Horner did not appear to have a previous criminal record within the surrounding jurisdictions.