A step-sibling may be facing criminal charges in connection with the death of an 18-year-old Florida cheerleader on board a Carnival cruise ship earlier this month.
The twist in the investigation into the death of Anna Kepner comes in a family court filing from Kepner’s stepmother, Shauntel Hudson, requesting a delay in a custody hearing, ABC News reports.
“The Respondent has been advised through discussions with FBI investigators and her attorneys, that a criminal case may be initiated against one of the minor children of this instant action,” the filing says. “Any testimony the Respondent may give, either written or oral, could be prejudicial to her or her adolescent child in this pending criminal investigation, therefore the Respondent cannot be compelled to testify.”
The FBI, which is leading the investigation into Kepner’s death, declined comment. Hudson’s family court filing noted specifically that the FBI was conducting an investigation “arising out of the sudden death of 18-year-old Anna Kepner.”
Kepner was found dead on November 7 as the Carnival Horizon cruise ship was in Cuba, as CrimeOnline reported. It returned to Florida immediately as the investigation began. Reports indicated that Kepner had returned to her room on board the ship on November 6, saying she wasn’t feeling well. She wasn’t seen again, and a maid found her dead beneath the bed the next morning, covered in life jackets and a blanket.
The medical examiner has not yet revealed a cause of death.
Hudson and her children were on the cruise along with Kepner’s father, Christopher Kepner, and his daughter were on the cruise.
ABC News said it had asked for a comment from the family but has not heard back.
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[Featured image: Anna Kepner/Instagram]
