NEWNow you can listen to Fox News articles!
The mother of 7-year-old Athena Strand made the decision Wednesday in the second week of the trial of the former FedEx driver who admitted to kidnapping and killing the little girl.
Tanner Horner, 34, pleaded guilty to capital murder shortly before his trial began in Texas, and jurors are considering whether he should be sentenced to death or life in prison without parole.
On Wednesday, jurors heard from Athena’s mother, Maitlyn Gandy, as she testified about her last moments with her daughter, in accordance with FOX 4.
“Do you remember the last time you said it to Athena?” the prosecutor asked him, the newspaper reported.
ATHENA STRAND’S KILLER SEPARATED PEOPLE FROM FEDEX DRIVER, DEFENDS HIMSELF, CALLS ‘FRAUD,’ NOT CRAZY: EXPERT
Former FedEx driver Tanner Horner has confessed to killing Athena Strand. (Varghese and Summersett Law Group)
“I told him I loved him and I would see him on Friday,” Gandy replied. “We brought them down quickly because his father was going to take them to the Christmas lights.”
Dressed in pink, Athena’s favorite color, Gandy recalled how she drove from her home in Oklahoma back to Texas when she heard about her daughter’s disappearance.
“It felt like I was dying,” Gandy said, according to FOX 4. “I couldn’t breathe, but I knew I had to keep going. I almost hit the brakes because I thought I was having a heart attack. But I just kept telling myself that if I keep going, it’s going to be okay, and I’m going to find him.”
He then goes on to explain how he broke the news of Athena’s death to his three-year-old sister.
FOLLOW THE FOX TRUE CRIME TEAM ON X
Tanner Horner hears the first day of his capital murder trial at the Tim Curry Criminal Justice Center in Fort Worth, Texas, on April 7, 2026. He pleaded guilty to kidnapping and killing Athena Strand, 7, in 2022. (Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News)
“I didn’t know how to tell him, and I didn’t think I had enough strength to tell him. So I lied to him for a long time. I told him that he was staying with his father for a little while. And when he asked to FaceTime or call him, I told him that he was at school or sleeping,” said Gandy. “Until last year, he didn’t know the whole truth.”
Asked if he watched the video of Horner choking Athena to death, Gandy said he was able to watch it for a few minutes and then apologized to the judges who had to see the video.
SUBSCRIBE FOR CRIME NEWS
A newly released photo shows Athena Strand, 7, shortly before prosecutors say she was kidnapped and killed by a FedEx driver delivering her Christmas present. (POOL via KDFW-TV)
“No one in this room other than Tanner Horner asked what was on that video, and Athena never did,” Gandy said.
Defense attorney Steven Goble did not question Gandy, instead offering his condolences as the bereaved mother took the stand.
SEND US A TIP HERE
“I’m so sorry for your loss,” Goble said, FOX 4 reported.
Horner admitted to kidnapping Athena while delivering a package containing a Barbie doll to her father’s home in Paradise in 2022. Her body was found on December 2, two days after she was reported missing.
LISTEN TO THE NEW ‘CRIME AND JUSTICE PODCAST WITH DONNA ROTUNNO’
Maitlyn Gandy gives a statement about the death of her daughter, Athena Strand, 7, at the Wise County Courthouse in Decatur, Texas, Thursday, Dec. 8, 2022. (Amanda McCoy/Star-Telegram)
Horner initially told investigators that he strangled the little girl after accidentally hitting her with the delivery car, adding that she was not seriously injured when he panicked and put her in his van.
On Monday, medical examiner Dr. Jessica Dwyer testified that Athena’s cause of death was blunt force trauma, suffocation and strangulation, adding that the little girl may have suffered before she died.
LIKE YOU’RE READING? FIND OUT MORE ON THE REAL CRIME NETWORK
After this murder, Horner wrote to Athena’s grieving family, he wrote: “To Athena’s family. I wanted to start by saying how sorry I am for Athena. Every time I’ve known my lawyer, they kept telling me how. I don’t need to apologize, I didn’t apologize, and the guilt? And frankly, I can’t hold much at night. stay awake, you can’t sleep I’m praying for you all.
Before leaving the courtroom, Gandy answered questions from prosecutors about why he was in court every day of Horner’s trial.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS PROGRAM
“There were bruises from the hands on my daughter’s neck, and because she no longer has a voice,” said Gandy. “And I want people to know that he’s not just a story, he’s not just a number.”
“He’s not just the picture you see in the headlines,” added Gandy. “He was loved. He is loved. And he is missed. And he was real. And he had life, and he wanted to live. And nobody can take that away from him. Nobody can take that away from him. And I will be his face, and it will be his voice. And I will make sure that everyone in this world knows that he was there. And we want him in our lives.”
