Athena Strand’s father sues FedEx, contractor who hired driver accused of child’s murder

The father of 7-year-old Athena Strand has filed a lawsuit in Wise County against FedEx, a contracting company, and the delivery driver who is accused of kidnapping and killing the child.

Jacob Strand filed the suit Tuesday in 271st District Court against FedEx Ground System Inc., Tanner Horner and Big Topspin Inc., which is the Dallas-based contractor that employed Horner. The suit alleges negligence and assault and asks for the maximum damages allowed by law, in excess of $1 million.

Wise County sheriff’s investigators have said that Horner abducted Athena from outside her father’s home in rural Paradise on Nov. 30, strangled her in the back of his FedEx truck and left her body in the water on the edge of the Trinity River near Boyd.

Authorities said FedEx and Big Topspin cooperated with the investigation to identify Horner as the driver who delivered a package to the Strand home around the time Athena was last seen. The package was a Christmas gift of Barbie dolls for the little girl.

After he was taken into custody on Dec. 2, Horner confessed to the crime, saying he accidentally backed into Athena with his FedEx van, according to his arrest warrant affidavit. He said she wasn’t seriously hurt in the accident but he was afraid she would tell her father, so he put her in the back of the van and decided to kill her, the warrant states. Video from inside the van shows Athena was alive and talking to Horner when she was taken, authorities said.

Horner faces charges of capital murder and aggravated kidnapping.

Athena’s mother, Maitlyn Gandy, who lives in Oklahoma, has separately hired a law firm to investigate her daughter’s death and find anyone who they believe should be held responsible.

The lawsuit alleges the companies didn’t properly investigate Horner’s background, including his mental health history and prior employment, failed to properly supervise him, and failed to implement safety policies.

The suit also mentions other FedEx drivers who have committed crimes including murder, rape and assault. In each of those cases, FedEx officials stated that they were “appalled,” according to the suit. After Athena’s death, a FedEx spokesperson said “words cannot describe our shock and sorrow at the reports surrounding this tragic event.”

“FedEx has continued their normal business operations although it is clear that their current efforts, if any, to ensure that they are not putting dangerous persons in a position of trust wearing FedEx uniforms, driving FedEx branded vehicles, and sending them to the doorsteps of the homes of nearly every person in America is woefully inadequate to avoid endangering the public,” the suit states.

FedEx has expressed its condolences to the family, Gandy’s attorney Benson Varghese said last week.

“Our thoughts remain with the family of Athena Strand in the wake of this tragedy,” FedEx said in a new statement in response to the father’s lawsuit. “We are aware of the complaint filed against FedEx Ground.”

FedEx Ground drivers undergo criminal history background checks during the application process, the company has said. Court records do not indicate that Horner has a prior record.

“FedEx Ground contracts with independent businesses that provide package pickup and delivery services using their own employees, vehicles and equipment,” FedEx Ground said in a prepared statement. “The employees of these service provider companies are subject to criminal history background checks as part of the driver eligibility process.”

Officials with Big Topspin could not immediately be reached for comment.