Anna Kepner: Arraignment scheduled for stepbrother accused of killing Florida teen on cruise

Anna Kepner's stepbrother charged months after teen found dead on cruise ship

Months after Anna Kepner was found dead on a Carnival cruise ship, her stepbrother has been charged as an adult in her murder. Retired FBI agent Jennifer Coffindaffer joins Good Day Orlando to discuss the case. 

The 16-year-old stepbrother of Anna Kepner, who is accused of sexually attacking and killing his stepsister during a family cruise vacation, has an arraignment hearing scheduled for next week in Miami, according to online records.

Timothy Hudson, 16, is scheduled to appear in federal court on Wednesday, April 22, at 10 a.m. in front of a magistrate judge. At the hearing, the charges against him will be read, and he will have the opportunity to enter a plea to those charges.

He has been charged as an adult with aggravated sexual abuse and first-degree murder in the November 2025 death of his stepsister on the Carnival Horizon cruise ship. FOX 35 has attempted to reach lawyers representing him for comment.

What happened to Anna?

The backstory:

Anna Kepner, 18, was found dead in her cabin on the Carnival Horizon cruise ship on November 7, 2025. Records in an unrelated case said she was found wrapped in a blanket under the bed.

The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner said the 18-year-old high school student died from mechanical asphyxiation, which is when physical force or an object is used to prevent someone from breathing. 

She was on the cruise with her grandparents, dad, stepmother, her stepbrother and half-brother, FOX 35 has learned. Anna, Timothy, and her 14-year-old half-brother all stayed in the same cabin, while her dad, stepmom, and grandparents were in other cabins.

Kepner – known as "Anna Banana – was a high school senior at Temple Christian School in Titusville, Florida. She was remembered as bubbly, funny, and outgoing in an online obituary.

"She filled the world with laughter, love, and light that reached everyone around her," it read, noting that she wanted to join the U.S. Navy after graduation and eventually become a K9 police officer. 

Who is Timothy Hudson?

Timothy Hudson is Anna Kepner's stepbrother and accused of raping and killing her.

According to court records in an unrelated case, Hudson's mom told a judge that her son took medication for ADHS and insomnia. She said he told her that he did not take it for two days while on the cruise, including the day before Anna's body was found. 

After the ship returned to PortMiami, Hudson was transferred to a medical facility.

In text messages included in that unrelated case, Timothy's mom said her son kept repeating that he could not remember anything about what had happened.

Hudson was charged as a juvenile in February, though case records were sealed at the time. He was not held in pre-detention and instead was released to another family member, an uncle, records state.

Under the conditions, he is allowed to leave the home in his uncle's custody and can't be alone with anyone younger than 18 years old. Timothy is also supervised under GPS monitoring. 

Since he is being charged as an adult, the U.S. Attorney's Office has asked the judge to revoke those release conditions and to have a bond hearing, claiming the teenager is a danger to himself and others.

Not a death penalty case

According to unsealed court records, if convicted, Timothy Hudson would not face the death penalty due to his age. The maximum penalty for either charge would be life in prison and up to $250,000 in fines.