A deeply upsetting case that has haunted a family — and drawn national attention — took a grim new turn this week.

The teenage stepbrother of Anna Kepner, the 18-year-old found dead under a bed aboard a Carnival cruise ship last November, was reportedly arrested and charged, according to a family member. Federal authorities have not yet publicly confirmed the arrest or announced charges.

Anna was discovered on Nov. 7 inside a cabin on the Carnival Horizon, wrapped in a blanket and covered with life jackets beneath a bed she shared with her stepbrother. Her death was later ruled a homicide by asphyxiation.

Because the alleged suspect is a juvenile, court records are sealed. But Anna’s father, Chris Kepner, told ABC News that his daughter’s stepbrother has been charged. The Independent has contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida for confirmation and comment.

According to reports, the stepbrother was seen Friday entering a Miami federal courthouse escorted by U.S. Marshals and public defenders — a quiet but startling development in a case that has unfolded largely behind closed doors.

From the beginning, investigators appeared to focus closely on the boy. Court filings in November described him as a “suspect” in Anna’s death, language that surfaced during a custody dispute between his parents, Thomas Hudson and Shauntel Hudson, who finalized their divorce in 2023 — months before the cruise.

Chris Kepner has previously said he believed the teen could be responsible, though he stopped short of making a definitive accusation.

“I want him to face the consequences,” Kepner told People last year. “I will be fighting to make sure that does happen.”

“I cannot say that he is responsible, but I can’t decline,” he added. “He was the only one that was in the room and the FBI has an ongoing investigation.”

According to court records, the teen’s mother told her ex-husband that her son claimed to have no memory of the events surrounding Anna’s death. She testified in December that the teens were close friends and had chosen to room together — along with Anna’s biological brother — rather than stay with their grandparents.

“They wanted to stay together,” she said. “The three of them, like the Three Amigos, are best friends.”

Anna Kepner, a high-school senior from Titusville, Florida, had been preparing for graduation and dreaming of her future. She hoped to become a cheerleader at the University of Georgia and had also considered joining the military or pursuing a career as a K-9 police officer.

Those plans ended beneath a bed at sea.