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The father of the Florida teen who died aboard a Carnival cruise was nowhere to be found when a subpoena arrived for him ahead of a tense custody hearing.
Christopher Kepner is the father of 18-year-old Anna Kepner, who was found dead in her cabin around 11:15 a.m. on Nov. 7. She was on a family vacation with her father, stepmother, grandparents and some of her siblings.
According to a process server’s sworn statement filed ahead of a contentious custody hearing scheduled for Friday, Christopher was unreachable after he was ordered to testify during a Dec. 5 hearing in Brevard County.
Anna Kepner, 18, was found dead aboard a Carnival cruise ship on Nov. 7, during a vacation with her family. (Anna Kepner/Instagram)
FATHER OF CHEERLEADER WHO DIED ON CARNIVAL CRUISE SUBPOENAED TO TESTIFY IN CUSTODY CASE
Process server Michael D. Schotte wrote that Kepner’s SUV sat running in the driveway and the lights inside the Titusville home were on, but no one responded to repeated knocks or the doorbell.
Schotte said a “No Trespassing” sign was posted on the property and a Ring doorbell camera was visible near the entrance. He announced several times that he was there to serve a subpoena and left the paperwork on the SUV’s windshield at 10:29 a.m.
When Schotte returned, the SUV had left and the subpoena he placed on its windshield was gone.
Read the verified return of non-service:
TEEN FOUND DEAD ON CARNIVAL CRUISE SHIP DIED FROM MECHANICAL ASPHYXIATION, RULED HOMICIDE: REPORT
While the bureau hasn’t publicly identified anyone as a suspect, and no criminal charges have been filed, the feud in family court between Christopher’s wife, Shauntel Kepner, and her ex-husband, Thomas Hudson, has revealed that their 16-year-old son is being investigated by the FBI in connection with Anna’s death.
The teenager had been traveling on the cruise ship with family members when she died. Anna shared a room with her two stepsiblings on the ship.
Anna Kepner, her father, stepmother and several siblings in a family photo. (Shauntel Kepner/Facebook)
After Anna’s death, Hudson asked the judge for custody of the daughter he shares with Shauntel, arguing in part that her parenting has directly put their 16-year-old son’s future “in jeopardy.”
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“The Petitioner has not been allowed input into the children’s lives and his lack of involvement has negatively impacted the children,” Hudson wrote to the judge on Nov. 17.
Christopher Kepner has not responded to Fox News Digital’s attempts to reach him.