A haunting photo shows 7-year-old Athena Strand moments before prosecutors say she was driven to her death by the FedEx driver who abducted and killed her while delivering her Christmas present.

The image, released by prosecutors on Tuesday, shows the young girl standing behind Tanner Horner on the day she was strangled in Texas in November 2022.

In the black-and-white photo, Athena appears visibly uneasy as Horner focuses on the road ahead.

Horner, 34, a former delivery driver accused of kidnapping and strangling the 7-year-old after hitting her with his van in 2022, admitted to her capital murder in a Tarrant County courthouse on Tuesday morning.

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Once the jury was finally seated on Tuesday morning for the start of his trial, Tarrant County Judge George Gallagher asked Horner to stand. 

“Mr. Horner, to the charge of capital murder, you may plead guilty or not guilty. What is your plea?” the judge asked.

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“Guilty, your honor,” Horner replied.

“Thank you. I will accept your plea,” the judge said.

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Horner admitted to abducting Strand while delivering a package to her father’s home in Paradise, a town of fewer than 500 people about 60 miles northwest of Dallas. Her body was found on Dec. 2 two days after she was reported missing less than 10 miles away from the property.

Horner, authorities said, was delivering a package of Barbie dolls intended to be Strand’s Christmas present. Athena was set to return to Oklahoma with her mother after the holidays and had been staying with her father, Jacob Strand, and stepmother, Ashley Strand, in Wise County.

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According to the arrest warrant, Horner told investigators that he strangled the 7-year-old after accidentally hitting her with his van while making a delivery at her father’s home. He said Strand wasn’t seriously hurt after he hit her while backing up, but he panicked and put her in his van. 

On Tuesday, Ashley Strand testified sharing the immediate aftermath when she realized that her stepdaughter had vanished.

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“I thought maybe she was just hiding somewhere,” her stepmom said.

The only thing she noticed that was unusual or out of place on the property was a package from Walmart containing Barbie dolls that she had ordered for Athena as a Christmas present. It had been dropped off in front of an abandoned trailer that was on the property.

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Athena was reported missing, and eventually an Amber Alert was issued, leading to 72 hours of searching.

Wise County’s former Sheriff Lane Akin also testified, sharing that the search efforts for the 7-year-old was a grassroots effort with community members standing “shoulder to shoulder” with police.

“I’ll never forget the morning of Dec. 1, citizens came from all parts of Wise County to help us find that child. And we put them to work with our deputies, with our investigators, with our game wardens. It was shoulder to shoulder. We had what we estimated was about 300 citizens and they brought their 4-wheelers. Some brought horses. Some brought dogs,” Akin said. “I appreciate the fact that so many people came out to help us that day.”

Fox News Digital’s Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.

A Haitian illegal immigrant who was caught and released by the Biden administration in 2022 was arrested after allegedly bludgeoning a mother to death with a hammer on Friday outside a gas station in Fort Myers, Florida, in broad daylight.

Rolbert Joachim, 40, is charged with second-degree murder and criminal damage to property, according to Lee County Sheriff’s Office jail records.

Surveillance footage appeared to show Joachim smashing the woman’s car windshield, approaching her, and repeatedly hitting her in the head with a hammer — killing her in broad daylight, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The woman, whose identity has not yet been publicly released, was reportedly a store clerk inside the gas station.

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She was also the mother of two teenage daughters, according to a report from local outlet Gulf Coast News.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) assisted the Fort Myers Police Department in tracking down and arresting Joachim on Mango Street in Fort Myers.

Joachim first entered the U.S. in August 2022 and was released into the country under the Biden administration, according to DHS.

A federal judge issued a final order of removal against him later that year, but he was granted Temporary Protected Status — which expired in 2024.

“This illegal alien barbarically hit this woman in the head multiple times with a hammer,” DHS acting assistant secretary Lauren Bis wrote in a statement. “This heinous murderer was RELEASED into the country by the Biden administration. Not only did the Biden administration release him into the country, but they then gave him temporary protected status. Their reckless immigration policies cost this woman her life.”

ICE has lodged a detainer against Joachim, and he will be deported regardless of the outcome of the case.

“The arrest of this criminal is an example of how ICE and local authorities can work together to swiftly bring criminals to justice and make our communities safer,” Bis said.

Vacationers can soon merge land and sea with a startling new tree house suite on the Royal Caribbean — as long as they cough up six figures. Online debate is already robust about the offering.

The Hero of the Seas vessel is rolling out the “Ultimate Family Treehouse” suite, which has a private whirlpool, game room and rooftop terrace.

The triple-deck suite can sleep up to 12 guests with four full bathrooms, according to the Royal Caribbean website.

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The tree house can cost families over $200,000 for a week’s stay, according to the Royal Caribbean blog.

In the “r/royalcaribbean” forum on Reddit, one user shared a post about “tree house suite pricing” — sparking lots of discussion.

“Shocking to me,” said one user in response. “I feel like people with this kind of money would charter a yacht instead of doing this.”

Another person wrote, “Clearly, this isn’t meant for 99.99% of cruisers.”

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Another user said, “I’m wondering how often it will sit empty [and] what their break-even is for providing the elevated services/cleaning time, etc., vs. just letting it sit empty for a sailing.”

A different Redditor added, “I am sure it will still be booked. Absolutely bananas, though. There’s more and more of the travel industry taking aim at fat wallets. Everything is pay to play now.”

Said another person, “Good on you if you can afford this. But I’d like to travel the world [for] that price.”

One person chimed in with this comment: “I would rather buy an actual house.”

“That pricing feels correct, and honestly, if I could afford it, I would potentially book this over a yacht, especially with family of all ages,” said another person. “I could also potentially see it as worthwhile for a bucket list trip. … Doesn’t matter because I can’t, but someone out there can, and good for them.”

This year, 21.7 million Americans are expected to go on an ocean cruise, according to AAA.

Stewart Chiron, a Miami-based cruise industry expert known as “The Cruise Guy,” told Fox News Digital that cruising continues to gain in popularity.

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“Cruise lines are constantly desiring to push the limits of ship designs to increase interest in cruising and wanting to come up with new features,” he said. “Constant tweaking of cabin and suite designs is always being considered.”

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He added, “Royal Caribbean’s upcoming three-story tree house will be talked about for years to come. What will they think of next?”