US teen charged with murdering his stepsister on cruise

A 16-year-old has been charged as an adult with sexually abusing and murdering his 18-year-old stepsister on a Carnival Cruise ship in November, federal prosecutors said on April 13.

The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s office in Florida determined that the victim, Ms Anna Kepner, died of mechanical asphyxiation.

In November, the stepbrother, who is from Titusville, Florida, was travelling on a Carnival Horizon ship with Ms Kepner and other family members when he sexually assaulted her and killed her, prosecutors said.

Ms Kepner, who was also from Titusville, was found dead Nov 7 in the cabin she shared with her stepbrother and a half-sibling, prosecutors said in court documents. At the time, the ship was in international waters, en route to Miami.

Federal prosecutors initially charged the stepbrother, who was identified in court papers only as T.H., as a juvenile. He surrendered to the authorities on Feb 3, when he pleaded not guilty in federal court in Miami, according to court papers. A magistrate judge released him from custody and allowed him to live with a family member while the case was pending.

Federal prosecutors then moved to charge the stepbrother as an adult, pointing out that he was older than 15 when Ms Kepner was killed and that his case involved violent crimes. Court papers showed that the stepbrother waived his right to a hearing on the request and asked the court to allow prosecutors to charge him as an adult.

A judge granted the request and unsealed an indictment on April 10 that charged the stepbrother with first-degree murder and aggravated sexual abuse. Both charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Mr Eric Cohen, a federal public defender who is representing the stepbrother, said on April 13 that the office does not comment on pending cases.

Federal prosecutors on April 13 also moved to revoke the magistrate’s order that had allowed the stepbrother to live with a family member while his case was pending. Prosecutors wrote in court papers that the stepbrother should be held in federal custody because he has now been charged as an adult and is “a danger to others”.

The stepbrother was involved in “the most serious, egregious and violative crimes one person can inflict upon another”, federal prosecutors wrote.

“He committed these crimes against a victim with whom he had no apparent relational strife, and whom he was being raised to view as a sibling. Furthermore, he carried out these crimes without any warning he could commit such atrocious acts, and despite an apparent supportive family environment.”

Mr Chris Kepner, Anna’s father and T.H.’s stepfather, told NBC News on April 13 that “justice needs to be served”.

“That is where the family stands,” he said, adding that the stepbrother should be held in federal custody.

Carnival said it was grateful to the FBI for investigating the case and to its own security teams for supporting the investigation. “We will continue to keep Anna in our thoughts,” the company said.

Ms Kepner was a student at Temple Christian School in Titusville, which held a gathering for students to honor her after her death.

“Praise God that we can rest in knowing that Anna is with our Lord and Savior,” the school wrote on Facebook in November. “It doesn’t make our grief any easier, but God is close to the broken hearted.” NYTIMES