Sherri Papini
Sherri Papini faked her own kidnapping in Redding, California, claiming two Hispanic women abducted her. She was found alive after 22 days. In 2022, she pleaded guilty to hoax charges.
On November 2, 2016, Sherri Papini, a 34-year-old mother of two, disappeared while jogging near her home in Redding, California. Her phone and earbuds were found on the road. Twenty-two days later, she was found alive on Interstate 5, bound, branded, beaten, and with her hair cut off.
Papini told police she had been kidnapped by two armed Hispanic women who held her captive. The case drew massive media attention and generated community fundraisers. Her husband Keith publicly advocated for her.
In 2022, DNA evidence and cell phone data revealed that Papini had actually been staying with an ex-boyfriend in Costa Mesa, California for the 22 days. She had self-inflicted her injuries and fabricated the kidnapping story.
Papini pleaded guilty to making false statements to a federal law enforcement officer and mail fraud (for collecting money from a victim's compensation fund). She was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison.
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