A 16-year-old, who was sharing a cabin with Anna Kepner during a Caribbean cruise when she was discovered dead, has now been indicted on charges of first-degree murder and aggravated sexual abuse.
Timothy Hudson will face trial as an adult in federal court. However, due to his juvenile status at the time of the alleged crime, he will not be eligible for the death penalty.
At the time of Anna’s death, Hudson was reportedly the only person present in the cabin with the 18-year-old cheerleader, who allegedly died from asphyxiation five months ago aboard the Carnival Horizon.
In recent weeks, the young defendant has attended several court sessions behind closed doors, with media access being restricted because of his age.
Authorities have kept all court documents sealed, and federal officials have neither confirmed nor denied the ongoing prosecution.
Hudson, the son of Shauntel Hudson—Anna’s stepmother and the wife of her father, Christopher Kepner—is currently staying with an uncle, monitored by a GPS ankle bracelet.
If convicted, he faces decades in prison, although mandatory life-without-parole sentences for juveniles were deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2012.
Anna of Titusville, Florida, was pronounced dead at 11.17am on November 7 while the 133,000-ton Horizon was en route from Mexico to Florida.
The 16-year-old stepbrother of Anna Kepner is (seen arriving in federal court last month) has been unmasked as Timothy Hudson after being charged as an adult in her murder
The high school senior, from Titusville, Florida, was on a six-day Carnival cruise to the Caribbean with her family when she was found dead onboard between Mexico and Florida on November 7
The Daily Mail was the first outlet to report that her body was found stuffed under a bed in the cabin she was sharing with her stepbrother and 14-year-old half-brother.
She had been wrapped in a blanket and covered with life preservers, according to our sources.
Anna had gone to bed early the night before, telling her family during dinner that she was feeling unwell.
While her half-brother wandered around the ship taking photos, she was left alone with her stepbrother who takes medication for ADHD and insomnia.
When the younger boy returned, he didn’t see Anna but assumed she was staying up late with Christopher, Shauntel or their grandparents Jeffrey and Barbara Kepner.
He climbed into his bunk and went to sleep – unaware, sources say, that his sister’s body was hidden just feet away.
It wasn’t until the next morning when the two boys headed to breakfast that the family realized Anna was missing.
A medical emergency was announced over the ship’s public address system, prompting Christopher, 41, to rush to her Deck 8 cabin, where a cleaning crew had just discovered the body.
Anna posed with her stepbrother, who is now accused of murdering her as he showed off his school diplomas
Anna died by asphyxiation aboard the Carnival Horizon and her stepbrother has been considered the sole suspect
A maid aboard the Carnival cruise was the one to find Anna’s body wrapped in a blanket, covered over with life jackets and stuffed under a bed, according to our sources, who spoke under condition of anonymity
A law enforcement source later told ABC that Anna died from asphyxiation caused by a bar hold, suggesting an arm was pressed across her neck.
FBI agents swarmed the ship, interviewed the family and scoured CCTV cameras when the Horizon returned to Miami on November 8.
Timothy insisted he could not remember what took place in the cabin, according to sources.
But the boy’s alleged involvement leaked out in court filings in a custody dispute between Shauntel and her ex-husband Thomas Hudson, 37.
They both referred to their son as a ‘suspect’ in court documents – with one filing describing bubbly Anna’s death as a ‘suspected murder’.
Thomas had sought emergency custody of their young daughter, claiming Shauntel took the kids on the ill-fated cruise without his permission – and even let the older children drink alcohol, an accusation she denied.
A Brevard County judge ruled that the girl was not in any danger and could remain with Shauntel and Christopher so long as Timothy was living elsewhere.
The couple had already removed him from their blended household in Titusville and placed him with a relative while the FBI investigation played out.
The high school senior was on vacation with her father, stepmother, half brother, and step brother Timothy (pictured) at the time of her death
Anna’s father Christopher was in court supporting the boy’s mother – Anna’s stepmom – Shauntel, at a hearing in Florida on December 5
His location was redacted in court documents but when the Daily Mail traced the skinny, blond-haired teen to a relative’s rural Florida home he would only say: ‘I’d rather not talk.’
High school senior Anna had chronicled her love of travel on TikTok and been on several cruises.
‘Anna was pure energy: bubbly, funny, outgoing, and completely herself,’ her family wrote in an obituary.
She planned on joining the US Navy or becoming a K9 handler in the Titusville Police Department.
Christopher and Shauntel are still together despite the extraordinary strain on their marriage.
They released a joint statement to the Daily Mail after we revealed that Timothy had made a secret court appearance in early February.
‘The loss of our daughter is a pain that will never fully heal. She was taken from us in a violent and senseless way, and our family has been permanently changed,’ the couple said.
‘Our grief is overwhelming, and her absence is felt in every part of our lives. No parent should ever have to bury their child, and no words can fully express the depth of our loss.
‘We believe in accountability and in the importance of justice being carried out. Our daughter deserves justice, and her life deserves to be honored through a full and fair legal process.’
