BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — 18-year-old Anna Kepner was enjoying a family cruise aboard the Carnival Horizon based out of Miami when her body was discovered on November 8, 2025. According to ABC News, the Titusville teen was found under a bed, wrapped in a blanket and covered by life vests.
The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner says Kepner’s death occurred on November 7, 2025, but has not yet released a cause or manner of death.
However, newly filed Brevard County court documents—submitted late Wednesday night by Kepner’s stepmother in an unrelated family case—are shedding new light on the FBI’s investigation.
In a motion for a continuance in that family matter, the filing states: “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.”
An emergency motion for temporary relief is even more direct: “The 16-year-old child is now a suspect in the death of the stepchild during the cruise.”
When we visited the family’s Titusville home earlier today, no one there wished to speak with us. According to an ABC News source, investigators are looking into whether there may have been an altercation between Anna and her stepbrother prior to her death. They are also reviewing other possibilities, including a medical emergency or a potential overdose. That work includes combing through ship security records, such as surveillance video and access-card activity.
We reached out to the FBI for comment, but the agency said it does not provide operational updates on ongoing investigations except in rare circumstances. Kepner’s family plans to celebrate her life at a memorial service on Thursday, as the FBI continues its probe into the teen’s death.
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