Anna Kepner stepmom, invokes 5th amendment surrounding custody battle with ex husband amid ongoing child custody case raising questions about her minor son’s possible involvement in cheerleader’s death and other secrets.
The rabbit hole keeps getting deeper….The stepmother of Anna Kepner, the 18-year-old Florida cheerleader found dead under a bed on a cruise ship, is invoking her Fifth Amendment right not to testify at a family court hearing involving her ex husband amid allegations of child abuse.
Shauntel Hudson was aboard the Carnival Horizon cruise ship at the time her stepdaughter’s body was found aboard the vessel on Nov. 8.
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The 36-year-old stepmom had travelled with her new husband, Anna’s biological father, Christopher Kepner, 41, his two other children along with her three children, Anna’s step siblings who accompanied her during a 6 day Caribbean getaway on the Carnival Horizon.
Hudson is currently engaged in a custody battle with her ex-husband, Thomas Hudson, who filed an emergency motion for temporary relief in Brevard County, Fla,. The motion states that one of his kids — one of Kepner’s step siblings — Shauntel Hudson’s 16-year-old son, Timothy-Tim-Hudson is currently suspected of killing Anna.
To date the FBI has not moved forward with any criminal charges against the minor boy.
‘The sixteen year old child is now a suspect in the death of the step child during the cruise,’ the filing states according to People Magazine.
Thomas Hudson further alleges that his ex-wife’s choices have put the 16-year-old’s future ‘in jeopardy.’
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But here’s where things get interesting, responding to the motion, the step-mom requested that a scheduled hearing be delayed due to the ongoing investigation into Kepner’s death, while acknowledging that a ‘criminal case may be initiated against one of the minor children.’
The response further states she intends to invoke her constitutional right not to self-incriminate and notes that any testimony she potentially gave ‘could be prejudicial to her or her adolescent child in this pending criminal investigation.’
Kepner’s body was found under a bed on the Carnival Horizon, CBS News previously reported, citing investigators.
Kepner was on the cruise with her father, stepmother and three stepsiblings, according to the outlet.
The night before she went missing, Anna Kepner reportedly told her family she wasn’t feeling well and then went to her room only to be found deceased the next day, her body stuffed under a bed in a cabin the girl shared with her younger brother and step-brother, currently suspected of being involved in her death.
Of note, the 14 year old brother has since stated un-knowingly having slept on the bed with Anna’s body hidden underneath.
Social media weighs in
The case continues to curry fervent speculation as to the motives of the involved family member’s including that of Shauntel Hudson, who many on social media accuse of attempting to cover up for her teen son.
Read sample comments on the web: ‘The step mom should be the one facing charges. She fed those boys hatred towards thier step sister for sure.’
Wrote another, ‘…what I’m getting out of it is she is trying to find a cause to give reason to cover whatever occurred between Timothy and Anna.’
Reflected another commentator, ‘Weird that no one checked on her that night after saying she said she wasn’t feeling well…’
The FBI is investigating Kepner’s death, which occurred in international waters. No criminal charges have been filed as of Thursday, Nov. 20.
