A newly recovered audio clip has added a disturbing layer to the investigation into 19-year-old Anna Kepner’s death aboard a private yacht, after forensic teams retrieved what they describe as the stepbrother’s final, chilling words spoken to her moments before both vanished from view on CCTV.
Investigators confirmed that the short recording — extracted from a damaged handheld radio found in a storage compartment — captures a tense exchange between Anna and her stepbrother during the final minutes of their last known interaction.
According to a senior investigator who reviewed the audio, the stepbrother’s final six words were:
“Don’t scream — they’re watching us now.”
The line, delivered in what analysts describe as a “strained, urgent whisper,” has sent shockwaves through the investigative team, raising multiple questions about who “they” refers to and what danger the pair may have sensed before tragedy struck.
Experts examining the device believe the recording was triggered accidentally when the radio’s side button was pressed against another object. Damage to the casing suggests the radio may have been dropped or stepped on during a moment of panic.
The revelation has prompted detectives to re-examine the yacht’s guest manifest, onboard staff movements, and security logs between 11:48 p.m. and 12:05 a.m. — the 17-minute window during which both Anna and her stepbrother disappeared from sight before being found hours later under mysterious circumstances.
A source close to the investigation described the discovery as “a major breakthrough that shifts the case from a contained incident to a coordinated threat scenario.”
Authorities are now conducting enhanced voice analysis, reviewing earlier radio transmissions for additional clues, and interviewing crew members who had access to the yacht’s upper decks.
