FedEx Driver Accused Of Strangling 7-Year-Old Girl To Death After Delivering A Barbie Doll To Her Home

A Texas FedEx driver has been accused of kidnapping and fatally strangling a young child after delivering a “You Can Be Anything” Barbie doll to a little girl’s home last year, RadarOnline.com has learned.

Wise County authorities said they have formally charged Tanner Horner, 31, with kidnapping and murder in connection with the death of 7-year-old Athena Strand, The Independent reported.

On Nov. 20, 2022, Horner delivered the Barbie to the Paradise home Strand shared with her father. The child’s mother, Maitlyn Gandy, who lives in Oklahoma, reportedly sent the doll to her daughter as a Christmas present, Front Page Detectives previously reported.

Horner claimed that while near the residence he accidentally struck the child with his FedEx truck and when she told him she was telling her father what happened he panicked, according to The Independent.

Police said Horner allegedly admitted he strangled Strand and then disposed of her body. Horner was indicted on Feb. 16 on two counts of aggravated kidnapping and a count of capital murder of a person under 10.

In a statement, the young victim’s mother thanked the grand jury for “their role in this process.”

“Hearing the facts and circumstances of my 7-year-old daughter’s kidnapping and murder was undoubtedly very difficult for them,” she said, noting, “I want them to know that their work is deeply appreciated. Tanner Horner’s indictment is the beginning of a long road through the justice system.”

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Horner was being held on a $1.56 million bond and faces up to life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty if he’s found guilty of the charges against him.

The Independent reported the suspect also faces four counts of sexual assault of a child in connection with an unrelated case from 2013.