A former FedEx driver pleaded guilty to capital murder after admitting he kidnapped and strangled a 7-year-old Texas girl who vanished while he delivered her Christmas present to her family’s home in 2022.
Haunting Photo Released Before Trial
Prosecutors released a chilling black-and-white photograph showing Athena Strand standing behind Tanner Horner, 34, moments before her death in November 2022. The image, made public Tuesday as jury selection concluded, captures the young girl appearing visibly uneasy in the vehicle while Horner focused on the road ahead. When Tarrant County Judge George Gallagher asked Horner to enter his plea at the courthouse Tuesday morning, the former delivery driver admitted guilt to the capital murder charge.
Horner confessed to police that he hit Athena with his delivery van at her father’s property in Paradise, a rural town of fewer than 500 residents located approximately 60 miles northwest of Dallas. After striking the child, he abducted her and strangled her. Authorities discovered her body on December 2, 2022, less than 10 miles from the family property, two days after she was reported missing.
Community Joined Desperate Search
Ashley Strand, Athena’s stepmother, testified about the terrifying moments after discovering the child had disappeared. The only unusual item she noticed was a Walmart package containing Barbie dolls she had ordered as a Christmas gift for Athena, left in front of an abandoned trailer on the property. Former Wise County Sheriff Lane Akin described the massive grassroots search effort that mobilized after an Amber Alert was issued.
300 Citizens Joined Law Enforcement
Akin recalled approximately 300 citizens arriving from across Wise County on December 1 to assist in the search. Community members brought four-wheelers, horses, and search dogs, working shoulder to shoulder with deputies, investigators, and game wardens during the 72-hour search operation. The tragic case highlights concerns about delivery driver screening and child safety protocols when strangers arrive at family homes. The guilty plea spares the family from enduring a lengthy trial while ensuring Horner faces accountability for the heinous crime.
This type of crime should at least be life in prison without parole and at hard labor.
The death penalty is what he actually deserves but would be too quick. He seems to comfortable with what he did and would probably do it again.
It should be death by a firing squad doing target practice. Oops, I missed, got your knee cap, oops again, got your crotch…
So, because he was exposed to lead paint, the public gets to pay for his food and housing for the next few decades or more.
Maybe one of his fellow inmates will find out what he did and give him the same treatment he offered that little girl.