Sherri Papini, the woman accused of faking her own kidnapping in 2016, formally pleaded guilty on Monday to mail fraud and making false statements to federal officials. She is expected to be sentenced on July 11.| MORE | Timeline: What led to Sherri Papini’s plea deal to fake a kidnappingPapini appeared in federal court Monday via Zoom, sitting next to her defense attorney, William Portanova, in his office. When U.S. District Judge William Shubb asked Papini if she had been kidnapped, replied, “No, your honor.” He asked if she had lied to the authorities when she said she had been kidnapped, and Panini replied, “Yes, your honor.” Papini was emotional at times during the hearing, wiping her eyes and nose with a tissue and looking down. Judge Shubb asked Papini how she felt today. She said, “I’m sorry, Your Honor. I’m sad. I am very sad, your honor. I feel very sad. Last week, her defense attorney, William Portanova, announced that Papini would plead guilty, releasing a statement on her behalf in which she apologized to those she had hurt and said she would work to make amends. what she had done. Papini’s alleged kidnapping sparked a frantic search that made international headlines in 2016. She told authorities at the time that she had been kidnapped at gunpoint by two Hispanic women, providing even descriptions to an FBI cartoonist. it was a lot of wasted time,” said Shasta County Sheriff’s Office Captain Brian Jackson, who served as the case’s supervising investigator. She was found on Thanksgiving Day after a 3-week search across California. said she had bindings on her body and a “mark” on her right shoulder, as well as other bruises and rashes on other parts of her body. Federal prosecutors alleged in early March that she was actually staying with a former boyfriend Nea 600 miles away in Orange County, Southern California, and injured herself to support her false claims. They included money for visits to her therapist for ‘treatment of anxiety and PTSD’, according to a court filing, and for the ambulance ride to the hospital after she surfaced near Sacramento. A GoFundMe campaign raised more than $49,000 to help the family, which the couple used to pay for bills and other expenses, according to a filing filed by investigators. It’s unclear what sentence she will face, but the charges carry sentences of up to five years in federal prison for lying to a federal law enforcement officer and up to 20 years for mail fraud. While Shasta County Sheriff’s Captain Jackson doesn’t expect Papini to receive the maximum sentence, he does have an idea of a sentence he thinks would fit the crime. think about the last two weeks, you know. Five and a half years sounds pretty good to me. The same time I spent on this case,” Jackson said. Papini’s plea deal also requires him to pay about $300,000 in restitution to ages, including the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office. and the FBI.”It’s good because it was funds that were, in essence, wasted on her,” Capt. Jackson said. — The Associated Press contributed to this report
Sherri Papini, the woman accused of faking her own kidnapping in 2016, officially pleaded guilty on Monday mail fraud and misrepresentation to federal officials.
She is due to be sentenced on July 11.
| MORE | Timeline: What led to Sherri Papini’s plea deal to fake a kidnapping
Papini appeared in federal court on Monday via Zoom, sitting next to her defense attorney, William Portanova, in her office.
When Senior U.S. District Judge William Shubb asked Papini if she had been kidnapped, she replied, “No, your honor.
He asked if she had lied to the authorities when she said she had been kidnapped, and Panini replied, “Yes, your honor.”
Papini was emotional at times during the hearing, wiping her eyes and nose with a tissue and looking down.
Judge Shubb asked Papini how she felt today. She said, “I’m sorry, Your Honor. I’m sad. I am very sad, your honor. I feel very sad.”
Last week, her defense attorney, William Portanova, announced that Papini would plead guilty, releasing a statement on her behalf in which she apologized to those she hurt and said she would work to make amends. what she had done.
Papini’s alleged kidnapping sparked a frantic search that made international headlines in 2016. She told authorities at the time that she had been kidnapped at gunpoint by two Hispanic women, providing even descriptions to an FBI cartoonist.
“It couldn’t have taken that long and it was a lot of wasted time,” said Shasta County Sheriff’s Office Captain Brian Jackson, who served as the case’s supervising investigator.
She was found on Thanksgiving Day after a 3-week search across California.
When she was found, officials said she had bindings on her body and a “mark” on her right shoulder, as well as other bruises and rashes on other parts of her body.
Federal prosecutors alleged in early March that she was actually staying with a former boyfriend nearly 600 miles away in Orange County, Southern California, and injured herself to shore up her false statements.
The mail fraud charges involve the reimbursements of more than $30,000 she received from the California Victims Compensation Board based on the false story. They included money for visits to her therapist for ‘treatment for anxiety and PTSD’, according to a court filing, and for the ambulance ride to the hospital after she surfaced near of Sacramento.
A GoFundMe campaign raised more than $49,000 to help the family, which the couple used to pay bills and other expenses, according to a court filing filed by investigators.
It’s unclear what sentence she will face, but the charges carry sentences of up to five years in federal prison for lying to a federal law enforcement officer and up to 20 years for mail fraud.
Although Shasta County Sheriff’s Captain Jackson doesn’t expect Papini to get the maximum sentence, he does have an idea of a sentence he thinks would fit the crime.
“I’ve had some time to reflect in the last two weeks, you know. Five and a half years seems pretty good to me. The same amount of time I’ve spent on this case,” Jackson said.
Papini’s plea deal also requires him to pay approximately $300,000 in restitution to agencies, including the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI.
“It’s good because it was funds that were basically wasted on her,” Captain Jackson said.
— The Associated Press contributed to this report