Prosecutors charged the FedEx driver, arrested earlier this month and accused of killing a 7-year-old girl, with the alleged sexual assault of a minor, jail records in Texas revealed.
Tanner Lynn Horner, 31, had been booked into custody and charged with alleged capital murder and aggravated kidnapping, but Wise County jail records now show he’s also facing three counts of sexual assault on a child.
The new charges appear to challenge Horner’s alleged explanation to investigators for his killing of Athena Strand.
Horner had told investigators the little girl was not seriously injured when he accidentally backed his truck into her, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.
The suspect told investigators that he “panicked” and feared “she was going to tell her father about being hit by the FedEx truck the Defendant was operating,” leading him to strangle her, the affidavit said.
Horner’s attorney and representatives for Wise County District Attorney James Stainton and Sheriff Lane Akin could not be immediately reached for comment on Wednesday.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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