MIAMI (WSVN) – A 16-year-old Florida boy has been indicted as an adult on federal charges in connection with the killing of his stepsister aboard a Carnival Cruise Line ship last year, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.
The defendant, identified only as T.H., is from Titusville and faces charges of murder and aggravated sexual abuse
According to court records, T.H. was traveling aboard the Carnival Horizon with his stepsister, Anna Kepner, and other family members on or about Nov. 6-7, 2025.
While the ship was sailing in international waters en route to Miami, T.H. allegedly sexually assaulted and intentionally killed Kepner.
The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s Office determined her cause of death to be mechanical asphyxiation.
T.H. was initially charged as a juvenile in February. The case remained sealed until a federal judge ordered it transferred for adult prosecution. A federal grand jury then returned the indictment.
The defendant faces a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted.
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