Stepbrother pleads not guilty to killing Anna Kepner on a cruise ship

U.S. newsStepbrother pleads not guilty to killing Anna Kepner on a cruise shipThe 16-year-old, identified in court documents as T.H., was indicted on federal charges, including murder and aggravated sexual assault, earlier this month. Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00Anna Kepner.anna.kepner16 via InstagramShareAdd NBC News to GoogleApril 21, 2026, 7:13 PM EDTBy Juliette Arcodia and Rebecca CohenMIAMI, Florida — The stepbrother of Anna Kepner, who was found dead on a Carnival cruise ship last year, has pleaded not guilty to federal charges in connection with her death.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.The plea was made in a Tuesday court filing that also waives the defendant's appearance at his arraignment, scheduled for Wednesday in Miami federal court, according to the filing."He will simply be arraigned tomorrow," his defense attorney said Tuesday via email.Federal prosecutors also confirmed the hearing was still expected to take place. Since his arrest in February, the defendant has been staying with, and has been in the care of, an uncle, prosecutors have said.An appearance in court Wednesday would have been his first since he was indicted on federal charges in connection with his stepsister's death earlier this month. Kepner, 18, died on the Carnival Horizon cruise ship on Nov. 7 while she was on vacation with her family. The cruise returned to the Port of Miami the next day, as was planned, Carnival said in a statement at the time. Add NBC News to GoogleStepbrother charged with murder months after 18-year-old found dead on cruise ship02:19Her 16-year-old stepbrother, identified in court documents as T.H., was indicted April 13 on federal charges, including murder and aggravated sexual abuse, in connection with Kepner's death. In a news release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida said T.H. sexually assaulted Kepner before killing her but did not off...