Athena Strand’s alleged killer charged with child sexual assault

FORT WORTH, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) — The man accused of murdering a seven-year-old girl last month has been charged with multiple counts of sexual assault of a child.

Tanner Horner, 31, of Fort Worth, was charged with aggravated kidnapping and capital murder earlier this month in connection to Athena Strand’s death.

According to jail records, Horner has now been charged with three additional counts of sexual assault of a child. However, these charges are not related to Strand’s death and appear to have been filed in Tarrant County.

Strand was first reported missing on Nov. 30 by her stepmother when she did not return home after leaving her family’s house. While investigating her disappearance, police discovered that a contracted driver for FedEx had dropped a package off at the house around the same time she went missing.

Police were able to track down the company the driver worked for and on Dec. 2, Horner was arrested. He allegedly confessed to killing Strand and led police to her body shortly thereafter.

Horner claims he killed Strand after he accidentally backed into her with his truck and “panicked.”