WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT – Details regarding Anna Kepner’s final moments have been revealed, as the mystery of her death deepens. The family remains desperate for answers.
New upsetting details have emerged regarding the final moments of Anna Kepner, who was found dead on a cruise ship earlier in November. Her death has been ruled a homicide.
Kepner’s aunt said her niece had fought for her life in the tragic moments before she died. Police say that the 18-year-old died of asphyxiation after being choked, and her body was discovered wrapped in a blanket and stuffed under a bed in her Carnival Cruise Line ship cabin.
Her death has been deemed a homicide, but so far, no arrests have been made. According to one family member, Kepner’s 16-year-old stepbrother is now under investigation by the FBI. While he hasn’t officially been named as a suspect, he was sharing a cabin with Kepner on the ship. It comes as tragic Anna’s haunting final 18 words were revealed.
Aunt Krystal Wright spoke to Fox affiliate WOFL about the moments leading up to Kepner’s tragic death.
“I know Anna fought. I know she fought for her life, so it’s rough. It’s rough,” she told the outlet.
She added, “It’s a turmoil. We’re just sitting here waiting,” explaining how the family has been unable to enjoy Thanksgiving.
Unrelated custody documents filed by the family said that Kepner’s stepbrother was under investigation, which Wright commented on in the interview.
“We don’t understand why, if the boy is a suspect, why has he not been charged yet? What’s happening there?”
The outlet said that the young victim’s body showed no signs of sexual assault, and no traces of drugs or alcohol were found in her system.
Kepner was found dead on a cruise ship while embarking on a six-day trip through the Caribbean. Also on the journey with her were her grandparents, her father, Christopher, her stepmom, Shauntel, her stepbrother, and three other siblings.
Kepner, the stepbrother, and another sibling chose to sleep in a separate room together, while the younger children stayed in a room with their parents. Her grandparents apparently said that one of them could bunk with them if they weren’t getting along, as they had an extra bed.
Devastated grandmother Barbara Kepner told ABC News, “I know that those two kids cared about each other in the right way.”
It comes after a separate incident in which a ‘hero’ dad burned a rapist to death with a hot spatula after getting his daughter pregnant.
