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Anna Kepner’s mysterious death aboard a Carnival cruise ship was a homicide by “mechanical asphyxiation,” according to a new report.
The 18-year-old was found dead aboard the Carnival Horizon on Nov. 7, around 11:15 a.m.
“Mechanical asphyxia just means there is something external to the body that hinders her breathing — her chest or belly can’t expand,” said Dr. Priya Banerjee, a board-certified forensic pathologist.
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The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s Office declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation.
The teen’s death was ruled a homicide, and she was “mechanically asphyxiated by other person(s)”, ABC News reported late Monday afternoon, citing a copy of Kepner’s death certificate reportedly supplied by her family.
Although her time of death is listed at 11:17 a.m. on Nov. 7, the report says she suffered her fatal injury on Nov. 6, the last night she was publicly seen alive.
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Mechanical asphyxiation isn’t always a homicide, said Dr. Michael Baden, the former chief medical examiner of New York City, but it can be, and it remains up to prosecutors to decide how the case should be charged, if they file charges at all.
The FBI is handling the investigation and has not publicly named any suspects as of Monday evening, although Anna’s 16-year-old stepbrother has been identified as a potential “suspect” by his own parents in court filings amid an ongoing custody dispute. No charges have been filed.
Kepner was found dead under the bed in her cabin, wrapped in a blanket and covered in life jackets in a room she shared with the stepbrother.
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Both of his parents and their attorneys have not responded to multiple requests for comment from Fox News Digital.
Kepner was a high school varsity cheerleader who planned to join the Navy after graduation and ultimately wanted to become a K-9 police officer.
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