A 34-year-old former FedEx delivery driver has pleaded guilty to the capital murder of a 7-year-old North Texas girl, Athena Strand.

On Nov 30, 2022, former FedEx driver Tanner Horner arrived at Strand’s home to drop off a Barbie doll package meant as a Christmas gift for the now-deceased girl, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

While at the home, he accidentally backed into and hit Strand, or so he later confessed to the authorities. In a moment of panic, he then abducted her and drove off.

Below is a horrifying, just-released photo showing her on her knees in the back of his truck (*Graphic content):

This image stopped the courtroom today.

Shown during the sentencing phase of Tanner Horner’s capital murder trial Tuesday, this is one of the last known photos of 7-year-old Athena Strand alive — sitting in the back of a delivery truck.

It’s haunting.

Athena appears upright.… pic.twitter.com/8szGOpCzWS

— Amelia Mugavero (@amugaverotv) April 7, 2026

At some point afterward, Horner tried but failed to break Strand’s neck. He then strangled her to death with his bare hands. He later dumped her naked body in a nearby river.

Following Strand’s disappearance, the police tracked down Horner based on the package he’d dropped off. He eventually led them to Strand’s body and was subsequently charged and arrested.

During an opening statement on Tuesday, which was supposed to mark the beginning of Horner’s trial (prior to his suddenly accepting a plea), Wise County District Attorney James Stainton accused him of lying about what happened at Strand’s home.

“She was very much alive and very much uninjured when he put her in the truck,” the prosecutor said, debunking the narrative that Horner had hit her and then panicked.

“The first thing Tanner Horner says to Athena when he picks her up and puts her in his truck, he leans down and says, ‘Don’t scream or I’ll hurt you.’ He says that twice. … That’s the first thing out of his mouth. He made good on it,” the prosecutor added.

Stainton also revealed that, despite the plea deal, he intends to play for the jury the horrifying dashcam audio from Horner’s truck that was recorded as he covered up the video feed so he could strangle Stand to death.

“You’re going to hear what a 250-pound man can do to a 67-pound child,” the prosecutor said. “And when I say it’s horrible, I mean it. I’ve been doing this for 25 years, and I promise you, buckle up.”

Stainton added that the jurors will also hear how Strand “fought with the strength of 100 men.”

“One thing that you can’t unhear is the level of fight in a 7-year-old girl when she’s facing certain death,” he continued, explaining how Horner tried “over and over again” to kill her.

JUST IN: Tanner Horner just pleaded *guilty to capital m*rder and aggravated kidnapping in the k*lling of 7-year-old #AthenaStrand.

He previously had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

This happened moments after he entered the courtroom.

This means the punishment phase… pic.twitter.com/5yqM8N2mSK

— JAMIE (@Just_Jamie_USA) April 7, 2026

Stainton further said that Horner had fought tooth and nail against investigators, even going so far as to conjure “a whole other persona out of thin air” by pretending to have multiple personality disorder.

“When we ask people what happened, sometimes they take responsibility,” the prosecutor said. “Not this guy. Everything was woe is me.”

Horner’s attorney, meanwhile, said in his opening statement that his client is autistic and grew up in a dysfunctional home where his mother abused alcohol both during his pregnancy and afterward. Horner’s father was reportedly also a substance abuser.

The murderer’s attorney even tried to argue that he was “exposed to a massive amount of lead” as a child and that this had some sort of effect on his brain and development.

FedEx has reportedly been cooperating with the authorities from the very beginning.

“Words cannot describe our shock and sorrow at the reports surrounding this tragic event,” the company initially said after Strand’s body was found four years ago.

“First and foremost, our thoughts are with the family during this most difficult time, and we continue to cooperate fully with the investigating authorities. At this time, any further questions should be directed to law enforcement,” the company added.

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