Northern California woman fakes kidnapping to go back to ex-boyfriend Sherri Papini, a mother of two, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for staging her own abduction in 2016, then lying to the FBI about it.
Papini faked the kidnapping so that she could return to a former boyfriend, which led to a three-week, multi-state search before she resurfaced on Thanksgiving Day that year.
She pleaded guilty last spring and has been ordered to pay more than $300,000 in restitution. Probation officers and Papini’s attorney had recommended that she spend a month in custody and seven months in supervised home detention, while prosecutors wanted her to serve eight months behind bars.
Senior U.S. District Judge William Shubb, however, opted for the 18-month sentence in order to deter others from such actions.
Papini is required to report to federal prison on Nov. 8 and serve 36 months of supervision after her release.
