The father of a Florida teenager who tragically passed away on a cruise ship has been dodging attempts by authorities to serve him with a subpoena related to an upcoming custody battle. Christopher Kepner’s daughter, Anna Kepner, aged 18, was discovered deceased last month aboard a Carnival cruise during a family trip. Her body was found wrapped in a blanket and hidden beneath a bed in the cabin she shared with her 16-year-old stepbrother. Although no suspects have been officially named, the FBI has reportedly been investigating the young boy as a potential suspect.

These revelations surfaced amidst a custody dispute in family court between Christopher’s wife, Shauntel, and her former husband, Thomas Hudson. Hudson has petitioned the court for custody of their daughter, citing concerns that Shauntel’s parenting might endanger their son’s future, an allegation she fervently denies. Christopher was summoned to testify on December 5 concerning this dispute. However, a process server reported being unable to serve him the subpoena in person. The server described finding Christopher’s SUV idling in the driveway and lights on in his Titusville, Florida home, yet no one responded to the door.

Documents, initially reported by Fox News, reveal that the property was marked with a ‘No Trespassing’ sign and equipped with a Ring doorbell camera. After several attempts to announce their presence, the server ultimately left the subpoena on the SUV’s windshield. Upon returning later, the server noted that the subpoena had been removed. Anna was pronounced dead at 11:17 a.m. on November 7 while vacationing with her blended family on the cruise. The vessel was navigating international waters between Mexico and Florida when her body was discovered, wrapped in a blanket and covered with life jackets.

She had been hidden beneath a bed inside the cabin she shared with the 16-year-old and her 14-year-old younger half-brother. Her official death certificate states she was ‘mechanically asphyxiated by other person(s).’ Authorities explained the term as meaning the cause of death was asphyxiation via a bar hold and that arm was pressed across her neck. The Daily Mail was the first to report that her 16–year–old stepbrother was considered a ‘suspect’ in Anna’s death and was under investigation . Her father told PEOPLE he wanted him ‘to face the consequences’ and that he would be ‘fighting to make sure that does happen,’ although he did not confirm that his stepson had been involved.

Anna and her stepbrother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, shared a cabin on the Carnival Horizon during the family’s tropical trip. On the night of her death, Anna’s younger brother heard yelling and chairs being thrown in the cabin, where she was alone with her stepbrother, according to what the teen’s ex–boyfriend Josh Tew told reporters at a memorial service last week. Josh claimed Anna’s younger brother told him their stepbrother prevented him from entering their room and that he’d ‘heard her yelling at her in a harmful way, like ‘shut the hell up’ and stuff like that.’ ‘That’s when he knew something was going on,’ Josh added. However, Josh claimed Anna’s relative had stopped talking to him. ‘He said the FBI told them that if they talk they’ll get arrested because it’s tampering with an investigation or something,’ he said.

Anna’s ex–boyfriend said he had called the FBI over his concerns and claimed investigators told him they were ‘glad I gave them the information.’ Josh also alleged he had ‘caught’ Anna’s 16–year–old stepbrother trying to get on top of her nine months ago. Anna’s father Christopher told the Daily Mail in a previous interview that investigators had shared barely any details with him. He said: ‘We were there as a family. Everybody was questioned. Everybody came off that ship. I don’t know who they are looking at or what their investigation is.’ ‘I have no idea what is going on right now,’ he added. ‘We are just trying to sit still and wait for answers.’ Anna was expected to graduate high school in May and had plans to join the US Navy and then become a K9 police officer, according to her obituary.