Boy, 16, Charged With Sexually Assaulting And Murdering His Stepsister Whose Body Was Found Hidden In Cabin On Cruise Ship

A 16-year-old boy has been charged pinch sexually assaulting and murdering his 18-year-old stepsister whose assemblage was recovered hidden connected a Carnival Cruise ship, authorities said Monday.

According to nan U.S. Justice Department, nan teen, identified by nan authorities arsenic T.H., was initially charged arsenic a juvenile connected February 2, but nan lawsuit was sealed until U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom ordered that he would beryllium prosecuted arsenic an adult, nan section said.

On November 7, a maid recovered Anna wrapped successful a broad and covered successful life jackets underneath a furniture successful a room she shared pinch 2 different teens, including nan younger stepbrother.

The origin of decease was wished to beryllium mechanical asphyxia, which is erstwhile an entity aliases beingness unit stops personification from breathing.

Prior to nan alleged charges and arrest, location were aggregate indications that Anna’s stepbrother was a attraction of nan investigation into nan decease aboard nan Carnival Horizon cruise, which was bound for nan Caribbean astatine nan clip of nan Florida teen’s death.

Chris Kepner, nan suspect’s stepfather, has antecedently suggested his daughter’s stepbrother could beryllium responsible.

”I want him to look nan consequences ... I will beryllium fighting to make judge that does happen,” he told People past year. “I cannot opportunity that he is responsible but I can’t decline,” he added. “He was nan only 1 that was successful nan room and nan FBI has an ongoing investigation successful which they will person to supply nan grounds to opportunity that he did do it aliases did not do this.”

Shauntel Kepner, nan teen’s mother, told her ex-husband that nan boy had nary representation of events surrounding Kepner’s death, according to matter messages submitted to nan tribunal arsenic portion of nan dispute.

She testified successful December that nan teens were bully friends and wanted to room together, on pinch Kepner’s biologic brother, alternatively than enactment successful a room pinch their grandparents.

“They wanted to enactment together,” she antecedently told News6. “The 3 of them, for illustration nan Three Amigos, are champion friends.”

Kepner, of Titusville, Florida, was group to postgraduate from precocious schoolhouse this twelvemonth and dreamed of being a cheerleader for nan University of Georgia. She had considered joining nan subject aliases serving arsenic a K9 constabulary serviceman aft school.