Mother's Desperate Plea to Halt Circulation of Haunting Kidnap Image
The mother of a seven-year-old girl, who was abducted and allegedly murdered by a delivery driver, has issued an urgent and emotional plea on social media platforms. Maitlyn Presley Gandy, the mother of Athena Strand, is begging the public to cease tagging her in posts that feature a distressing image of her daughter's kidnapping.
Heartbreaking Case Details Emerge in Court
Athena Strand's body was discovered two days after she vanished from her home in Paradise, a rural town near Fort Worth, Texas, in 2022. The abduction was carried out by Tanner Horner, a FedEx driver who was delivering a Christmas present to the family. Horner, now 34 years old, confessed to detectives after his arrest that he accidentally struck Athena with his van, then bundled her into the vehicle and strangled her to prevent her from reporting the incident.
Horner has entered a guilty plea to charges of capital murder of a child under ten years old and aggravated kidnapping. As a result of this plea, the case has bypassed the trial phase entirely and will proceed directly to the punishment phase, where sentencing will be determined.
New Footage Reveals Chilling Details
Recently released courtroom footage from last week shows Athena appearing uninjured and looking over Horner's shoulder as he drives away in his truck. This image has circulated widely, prompting Gandy's desperate appeal. She expressed, "Please, I am begging, if you have any respect for me at all, please stop tagging me in posts with Tanner Horner in them and especially the van still image of him taking my daughter."
Gandy added, "It lives in my head without the frequency I've been tagged in it. I've been looking at him for nearly three years now, and I know exactly what he looks like, whether he loses/gains weight or changes his facial hair. I know no one has meant to do this out of malice, but it hurts all the same."
Prosecution Challenges Horner's Account
During the opening of the prosecution's case last week, Wise County District Attorney James Stainton asserted that Horner's claim of accidentally running over Athena is an "absolute lie." The court heard testimony that Horner told Athena, "Don't scream or I'll hurt you," twice as he placed her in the truck.
Stainton warned jurors that the evidence in this case is exceptionally "rough." While the truck's camera was covered during the strangulation, the audio continued to record. He stated, "You are going to hear what a 250-pound man can do to a 67-pound child. And when I say it's horrible, I mean it. I've been doing this for 25 years, and I promise you, buckle up."
Additional evidence presented includes Horner's DNA found under Athena's fingernails, indicating she fought back, and his DNA discovered in inappropriate places on the young girl's body. The trial was relocated from rural Wise County to Fort Worth after Horner's defense attorneys argued that a fair trial would be unattainable in the original venue.
This tragic case continues to unfold as the community and nation grapple with the devastating loss of a young life and the ongoing legal proceedings.
