Athena Strand’s mom on mission to protect kids from ‘monsters wearing delivery uniforms’
Maitlyn Gandy is on a mission to protect other families from the grief she’s felt after authorities said a FedEx contract driver confessed to abducting and killing her 7-year-old daughter, Athena Strand, last week.
Standing in front of the Wise County Courthouse in Decatur on Thursday, Gandy thanked the community for their support and said Athena’s death would not be in vain.
“Screening and hiring policies must be put into place so that monsters wearing delivery uniforms don’t show up at our children’s doorsteps,” Gandy said.
Gandy retained the Fort Worth-based law firm Varghese Summersett Injury Law Group earlier this week to seek accountability for Athena’s death.
Attorney Benson Varghese said the firm would not rush toward filing any lawsuits but would conduct a thorough investigation and cooperate with law enforcement to “uncover every person who is responsible by their actions or inactions for the tragedy that happened.”
Varghese said his office has already started putting those they think may be connected with the case on notice. He confirmed three letters have been sent but declined to say to whom.
“I’m not going to, at this point, include or exclude anyone from being the possible target of a lawsuit,” he said. “The ultimate goal here is to ensure that no parent or grandparent or family member feels the loss that Maitlyn’s going through right now.”
‘Athena was robbed of the opportunity to grow up’
Athena disappeared Nov. 30 while staying with her father and stepmother in Wise County, leading to a two-day search involving hundreds of officers and volunteers. Her body was found Dec. 2. FedEx Ground contract driver Tanner Horner is accused of abducting the girl while making a Christmas delivery to her father’s rural North Texas home in Paradise.
Gandy said Horner had been delivering a package containing “You Can Be Anything” Barbies, intended as a present for Athena. She had the box containing the dolls with her at Thursday’s news conference.
“Athena was robbed of the opportunity to grow up to be anything she wanted,” Gandy said. “And this present, ordered out of innocence and love, is one she will never receive.”
Horner, 31, faces charges of kidnapping and capital murder. He is in the Wise County Jail with bond set at $1.5 million. The clerk’s office told the Star-Telegram on Thursday that Horner hasn’t been scheduled to appear in court yet.
Wise County Sheriff Lane Akin told the Star-Telegram on Saturday that he and the District Attorney’s Office have already discussed plans to pursue the death penalty for Horner if he’s convicted.
Varghese told reporters Thursday that he agrees with that decision.
“It’s a huge commitment to say that you’re seeking the death penalty,” Varghese said. “It’s not a small undertaking. So they are doing what this community wants and it is undoubtedly appreciated by everyone in this community and certainly Maitlyn and the family.”
Decatur, the county seat for Wise County, is about 10 miles away from Paradise, where Athena was abducted. Akin said her body was recovered on the water’s edge of the Trinity River near Boyd after Horner told investigators where to find her.
Some local businesses display pink ribbons, Athena’s favorite color, on their doors. The marquee outside the Majestic Theatre on State Street in Decatur reads, “Rest in Paradise sweet Athena.”
Decatur resident Brittany Allred said Athena’s death was a blow to the entire county.
“It’s such a tight-knit community,” she told the Star-Telegram. “We all feel it.”
Varghese asked anyone who has information pertaining to the case to reach out to the law group at versusinjury.com/answers-for-athena, email answersforathena@versusinjury.com or call 817-203-2220.
Numerous vigils for Athena have been held around Wise County.
A private funeral service will be held Friday. Gandy said Thursday that Athena “will be cremated and come home in an urn because I am not even close to being ready to let her go.”
