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A former delivery driver who murdered 7-year-old Athena Strand searched “do FedEx truck cameras constantly record” after the killing, an expert testified in week two of the capital murder trial.
The second week of Tanner Horner’s punishment phase began with Scott Morris, a digital forensic examiner employed by the FBI, who exposed the search history of the FedEx driver’s cellphone.
He talked about Horner’s browser cache and search history on the day of Dec. 1, including the phrases “Paradise missing girl” and “do FedEx truck cameras constantly record.”
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Horner, 34, a former delivery driver accused of kidnapping and strangling the 7-year-old after hitting her with his van in 2022, admitted to her capital murder in Tarrant County, Texas last week.
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On Monday, medical examiner Dr. Jessica Dwyer testified that the cause of death was blunt force injuries, smothering, and strangulation.
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Under questioning from prosecutors, Dwyer said she believed the victim suffered before she died.
Addressing the lack of physical evidence of sexual trauma, Dwyer noted that while none was found, its absence does not rule out the occurrence of an assault.
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Prosecutors also played five separate phone calls between Horner and family members. During one call, Horner’s mother asked him what happened during the abduction.
“What did you do? Did she die on her own?” his mother asked.
“No,” Horner admitted.
“Oh my God,” his mother exclaimed.
“I know,” Horner said.
She also asked him whether he sexually abused Athena.
“Tanner, I just hope you didn’t do nothing weird to that little girl,” his mother said.
“I didn’t,” he said.
“OK. I didn’t think you did. I just know how you get,” his mother said.
“Well, actually with my medication, I barely even have a libido as it is,” Horner said.
In a call conversation with his grandmother, Horner once again denied raping Athena.
“Are you remorseful, Tanner?” his grandmother asked.
“How can I not be?” he replied. “I haven’t been on my medication for the last few weeks, and I’m feeling emotional.”
He also, according to FOX 4 Dallas, broke down on the call when discussing that he would not be able to spend Christmas with his young son.
Following the murder, Horner wrote a letter to Athena’s heartbroken family, writing: “To Athena’s family. I wanted to start by saying how sorry I am about Athena. The entire time I’ve known my legal counsel, they continued to tell me how. I don’t need to apologize, didn’t apologize, and the trial? And frankly, I can’t hold it in any longer. I can’t tell you how many countless nights I’ve stayed awake, unable to sleep. I pray for you. For all of you. So many were affected by my breakdown. Not just your family, but my own as well. You’ll never get to see your baby girl grow up. And I’m sorry,” the letter to Athena’s family said.
At the start of the trial, Horner admitted to abducting Athena while delivering a package to her father’s home in Paradise, a town of fewer than 500 people about 60 miles northwest of Dallas. Her body was found on Dec. 2, two days after she was reported missing less than 10 miles away from the property.
Horner, authorities said, was delivering a package of Barbie dolls intended to be Athena’s Christmas present. She was set to return to Oklahoma with her mother after the holidays and had been staying with her father, Jacob Strand, and stepmother, Ashley Strand, in Wise County.
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According to the arrest warrant, Horner told investigators that he strangled the 7-year-old after accidentally hitting her with his van while making a delivery at her father’s home. He said Athena wasn’t seriously hurt after he hit her while backing up, but he panicked and put her in his van.
Athena was reported missing, and eventually an Amber Alert was issued, leading to 72 hours of searching.