Sherri Papini, the California woman infamous for faking her kidnapping in 2016, is once again making headlines—this time for filing a restraining order against Katherine Parrick, a woman who claims her ex-partner left her and their daughter for Papini. 5dg6m

Parrick’s claims: abandonment and intimidation 4k3y5o

Parrick has publicly alleged that her ex-partner abandoned her and their daughter to be with Papini. In a GoFundMe campaign, Parrick detailed the emotional and financial hardships she faced following the separation.

Parrick took to Reddit to share her experiences, stating, “I have had NO interaction with Sherri Papini aside from what I wrote here and in the GoFundMe.” She recounted an incident where, while staying at a friend’s house in Shingletown, California, near Redding, her ex sent a text claiming their daughter should be with him and that he “knew where we were staying.”

Shortly after, Parrick says she observed Papini driving slowly by the house, peering at the vehicles. Upon making eye with Parrick, Papini reportedly had an “oh s—!” expression and sped away.

Parrick responds to claims she’s harassing Papini 65f20

A subsequent Reddit comment suggested Parrick, not Papini, has harassed Papini and Parrick’s ex. Stating in part, what Parrick is posting “isn’t actual fact. Feelings are not facts in a court of law!” 

Parrick emphasized, “I have had NO interaction with her aside from what I’ve written AND from seeing her drive by looking for me while my daughter and I were staying at a friend’s house in Shingletown. I believe I started pointing at the car when I realized it was her (doing Phony’s ‘dirty work’).”

Parrick also hinted at more severe allegations, mentioning, “I didn’t even write about THE DIRECT THREATS SHE AND PHONY,” presumably a nickname for Parrick’s ex, “MADE TO MY LIFE during the third week of their ‘dating.’ But maybe I should…”

Sherri Papini’s legal troubles and recent developments ny2s

Papini’s notoriety began with her fabricated kidnapping in 2016, where she claimed to have been abducted by two Hispanic women. In reality, she had been staying with an ex-boyfriend during her 22-day disappearance. In 2022, Papini pleaded guilty to mail fraud and making false statements to federal agents, resulting in an 18-month prison sentence, of which she served approximately 11

Following her release, Papini has been involved in a contentious custody battle with her ex-husband, Keith Papini, over their two children. Keith, who was granted full custody after Sherri’s arrest, has expressed concerns about the potential harm to their children from Sherri’s actions and the media attention surrounding them.

In addition to her legal battles, Papini has been ordered to pay over $300,000 in restitution for the costs incurred during the investigation of her fake kidnapping. As of March 2024, federal prosecutors have filed a writ of garnishment against her, seeking to collect the unpaid restitution.

The Parrick restraining order 4e5462

The restraining order filed by Papini against Parrick has raised eyebrows, especially given Parrick’s claims of minimal interaction with Papini. Parrick asserts that the only direct encounter she had with Papini was the drive-by incident in Shingletown. She believes the restraining order is an attempt to intimidate and silence her.

This article contains mild spoilers for Sherri Papini: Caught in the Lie.

Nearly a decade after her supposed abduction shocked the nation, Sherri Papini’s story remains riddled with contradictions—none more perplexing than the inconsistencies surrounding her cell phone.

Papini, a mother of two from Redding, California, disappeared in November 2016 while reportedly out for a jog. Her sudden vanishing set off a massive search. Three weeks later, she reappeared on Thanksgiving morning, battered and branded, claiming she had been kidnapped by two Hispanic women. For years, her tale held up—until federal investigators uncovered the elaborate hoax.

The new ID docies Sherri Papini: Caught in the Lie highlights several lingering mysteries in the case, but the confusion over her phone may be one of the most revealing, especially since Papini has now recanted her story that she plotted with her ex to stage the abduction.

Papini now says she was abducted by her ex, James Reyes, amid an emotional affair. But, she says she only agreed to say someone else was responsible so Reyes would let her go.

The mystery of Papini’s cell phone 4f2z4a

Among the first major clues in the case was Papini’s cell phone, discovered the day she went missing. Found near the intersection of Sunrise Drive and Old Oregon Trail, the device had her earbuds wrapped loosely around it and strands of her blonde hair tangled in the cords. The scene appeared staged, but at the time, it fueled the belief that she had been abducted.

But it was the phone’s peculiar placement that raised eyebrows among law enforcement. If she had been violently kidnapped, why had the phone been found so neatly? And why, in her later statements, did her story about the phone keep changing?

“The way it was placed … you don’t just drop your phone when you’re being kidnapped and coil up your headphones and then pull your hair out and make sure it’s in there,” Denise Farmer, the Papini case’s now retired FBI lead investigator, says in the ID series, “That was very strange to us.”

Papini previously told her now ex-husband, Keith Papini, “I knew you’d find my phone and my hair … That’s why I pulled it out — I knew you’d know.” During the initial investigation, she also somehow knew about the phone’s discovery, and later said Reyes told her it was found while he kept her captive, based on a new report about the search.

Papini told detectives she couldn’t recall much about how the phone got there. Later, she claimed she may have thrown it or it may have fallen during the scuffle. In another version, she said her captors tossed it out to mislead police. Her new shifting explanation of what happened only deepens the suspicion around her .

Papini’s hair is equally puzzling 142tw

Equally puzzling was the presence of her hair on the earbuds. The strands appeared intentionally wrapped, as if someone had taken the time to stage the scene rather than it being the result of a spontaneous attack.

The phone wasn’t the only detail to change over time. Her entire of the 22-day ordeal shifted repeatedly. She described harrowing conditions—being starved, beaten, and branded—yet some details were medically inconsistent or implausible. It wasn’t until 2020 that DNA evidence on her clothing, which didn’t match the alleged captors’ descriptions, led agents to her ex-boyfriend.

When confronted with the DNA and inconsistencies, Papini finally confessed. A confession she now says isn’t true. In 2022, she pleaded guilty to making false statements to federal agents and mail fraud. She was sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay over $300,000 in restitution.

While much of the case has been resolved, the docies brings renewed attention to lingering questions, especially about how Papini managed to deceive authorities and the public for so long. The detail about the cell phone remains a focal point.

A California mother has alleged that her partner abandoned her and their daughter to move in with Sherri Papini. Papini is the California woman infamous for staging her kidnapping in 2016. The mother, Katherine Parrick, claims her ex left her and her daughter, 11, homeless and without . Papini has now filed a restraining order against her.

He moved into her “mansion” 5k284b

According to Parrick’s GoFundMe campaign, her partner of 16 years left their family to live with Papini. As a result, Parrick alleges she was without housing, financial , or even their daughter’s clothing. Parrick wrote, “While he moved into her ‘mansion,’ he left my daughter and I (and our two cats) homeless.” She further alleges that he has not provided any child . She also claims he has recently sued her for custody of their daughter.

In response to Parrick’s public allegations, Sherri Papini has filed a temporary restraining order against her, according to California news outlet KRCR. A court hearing regarding the restraining order is scheduled for May 28, 2025.

“I was able to secure PERMANENT HOUSING”  14312q

On May 22, Parrick provided an update in a follow-up post on her GoFundMe page. “Thanks to everyone’s generosity, I was able to secure PERMANENT HOUSING for my daughter and I. For details of our story, check Reddit–my posts are on r/thepapinis. ‘She’ and my ex are both coming after me—legally and by stalking me in real life, just for sharing my story.”

Parrick added in part, “I’m leaving this open for two reasons–one, to get an attorney (or two for each case, lol) and two, to secure any further donations for necessary household items for my daughter and I…We need some basics like a refrigerator, a microwave, rugs, a couch, a TV, a microwave, bedding, dressers/drawers, etc.”

The Papini case 4j5p4z

In 2016, Papini claimed she was abducted while jogging near her home in Redding, California. She reappeared three weeks later with injuries and a fabricated story about being held captive by two Hispanic women. Investigations later revealed that she had been staying with an ex-boyfriend during her disappearance and had inflicted injuries on herself to her false claims. In 2022, Papini pleaded guilty to making false statements and mail fraud, resulting in an 18-month prison sentence and a restitution order of $300,000.

A new four-part docies titled Sherri Papini: Caught in the Lie premiered on Investigation Discovery on May 26, 2025. The series features Papini’s first major interview since the hoax, where she now claims that her ex-boyfriend, James Reyes, abducted and abused her, contradicting her previous issions. The documentary features polygraph tests and reenactments, providing viewers with a deeper insight into the complexities of the case.

Parrick’s situation has garnered public sympathy, with many expressing outrage over the alleged abandonment. Her GoFundMe campaign has been shared widely, highlighting the challenges faced by single mothers and the importance of ability.

The unfolding events surrounding Parrick and Papini underscore the far-reaching impacts of personal decisions and public actions. As legal proceedings continue, the community watches closely, hoping for justice and resolution for all parties involved.

The infamous Sherri Papini kidnapping hoax is back in the spotlight thanks to Investigation Discovery’s new docies Sherri Papini: Caught in the Lie. In it, Papini offers a new explanation for her 2016 disappearance—but even her mother isn’t buying it.

For the first time on camera, Papini, now 42, gives her side of the story—claiming her ex did abduct her, and she agreed to lie about who did it so he’d let her go. She does say she got involved with her ex in a desperate, misguided attempt to seek attention and escape what she perceived as an unive relationship.

In a stunning moment from the film, Papini confesses: “I agreed to make up that someone else did it.”

Papini added, “It wasn’t the right choice and I know that… I wish I would’ve told the truth from the day I was in the hospital — that it was James,” her ex-boyfriend who she says was responsible, suggesting she was kidnapped after all.

Papini goes on to say it all started with an “emotional affair with her ex” and that she felt guilty for “leading him on.” Papini explains, “I wasn’t thinking about my neighbor that was searching for me. I wasn’t thinking about the churches that were lighting candlelit vigils. I was thinking about myself.”

“No, it wasn’t a kidnapping” 6x26r

But Papini’s mother, Loretta Graeff, is also in the show. Graeff says, “No, it wasn’t a kidnapping,” contradicting Papini’s new story about what happened. But, Graeff adds, “My daughter was very, very unhappy in her marriage. She wanted some kind of happiness.”

Graeff continues, when Papini’s ex James showed up, “and Sherri went with him, it wasn’t a kidnapping.” Instead, Grff says Papini felt, “I want to have a little bit of happiness in my life because it’s been very, very hard. She needed to get away from him,” Graeff added, referring to Papini’s ex-husband, Keith Papini. “She didn’t abandon her children,” Graeff said.

The Sherri Papini kidnapping hoax: a national sensation 2f2q3j

In November 2016, Sherri Papini, a young mother of two from Redding, California, vanished during a routine jog. She returned three weeks later, injured, and claiming two Hispanic women had kidnapped her. The saga ignited national sympathy and widespread media coverage.

But Papini’s story was a lie. After years of investigation, authorities discovered she had orchestrated her disappearance. As police learned, she had been staying with an ex-boyfriend hundreds of miles away. In 2022, she pleaded guilty to mail fraud and lying to federal agents. She served 18 months in prison and was ordered to repay over $300,000 in restitution.

The new ID documentary series Sherri Papini: Caught in the Lie offers an in-depth look at one of the most shocking kidnapping hoaxes in recent American history. With exclusive interviews, intimate footage, and commentary from family , investigators, and legal experts, the film offers a comprehensive breakdown of how the story unraveled.

Sherri Papini, the infamous kidnap-hoaxer featured in the Hulu doc Perfect Wife, has a new boyfriend, reportedly. And Papini picked the wrong guy if she hoped the relationship might help her retreat from the true crime spotlight, according to Reddit.

In 2016, Papini, a young married mother of two, disappeared while jogging near her home in Redding, California. With his wife missing, Keith Papini, Shari’s ex-husband and the father of her two children, did what any husband would do, and raised the alarm. The story caught on nationwide, but Papini showed up a few weeks later. She claimed that “two Hispanic women” kidnapped her, tortured her, and then released her.

Fast forward to 2022, when investigators reveal that Papini made the whole thing up: There was never any kidnapping. Sherri was in Southern California the entire time with her ex-boyfriend, whom she encouraged to injure her as part of the ruse. Otherwise, some of Papini’s injuries were self-inflicted. Papini served 18 months in prison for lying to Federal Agents and Defrauding the California Victim Compensation Board, followed by 36 months of supervised housing.

Who is Shawn Hibdon? 2p2h6m

In June 2024 the Daily Mail published photos of Sherri Papini and her new boyfriend, Shawn Hibdon, embracing and kissing in a parking lot near Orland, California. Sources told the Mail the couple met before Papini went to prison. Hibdon, a widower and father of two who owns Hibdon Auto Center in Orland, about 60 miles south of Redding, had been seen picking Papini up from her halfway house in Oakland, California. Hibdon has also reportedly purchased Papini a $755 thousand property in the mountains east of Redding. But as it turns out, Shawn Hibdon carries another true crime controversy into the relationship.

What happened to Brittany Hibdon? 4c342l

In September 2021, Shawn Hibdon’s late wife, Brittany Hibdon, died suddenly, just four days after telling Shawn she wanted a divorce, according to JusticeforBrittany.org, a website claiming Brittany’s death was not adequately investigated. The preliminary autopsy showed Brittany, who was 37 when she died, had COVID, but the timing of her death has online sleuths talking. Brittany had no full autopsy. Meanwhile, Justice for Brittany says Sherri and Shawn were set up by a therapist seeing Sherri and the Hibdons as a marriage counselor before Brittany’s death.

Some are also now questioning where the money Shawn raised through GoFundMe went. And whether Brittany’s life insurance policy payout may have possibly paid for Sherri and Shawn’s new home east of Redding. It’s not clear when Sherri and Shawn started dating. So far, Shawn has not been accused of any crime, and allegations of foul play relating to Brittany’s death are unconfirmed.

The trailer for Hulu’s Perfect Wife: The Mysterious Disappearance of Sherri Papini has dropped. We’ve marked the date the true crime documentary is set to premiere, June 20, on our calendars, and you’ll want to listen up if you’re still missing American Nightmare, Netflix’s Denise Huskins’ story.

In 2016, Sherri Papini, a married mother of two from Redding, California who seemed to be living the perfect life, disappeared while jogging, only about a mile from her home. About three weeks later, on Thanksgiving day, she reappeared about 150 miles from where she vanished, injured, emaciated, and still wearing restraints. Papini’s head was shaved and a Bible verse was branded on her shoulder.

Papini said two Hispanic women kidnapped her at gunpoint but then let her go. But before long, Papini’s version of the story fell apart, and it was revealed that Papini’s supposed abduction was a hoax.

Why did Sherri Papini fake her kidnapping? 4b7166

Sherri Papini never said why she did it, according to California news outlet KRCR. But the investigators began to suspect that Papini, who was 34 at the time, was lying when male DNA was discovered on her clothing, among other inconsistencies in her story. That DNA matched her ex-boyfriend, James Reyes. Phone records also revealed Papini and Reyes were in before the fake abduction happened.

“That is how she used to deal with things as a child. When things got hard, she would just run away,” Asia Coleman, Papini’s friend, told the Shasta County Sheriff’s Department, about Papini’s potential motive. Meanwhile, her attorney, William Portanov, called it a ” … very complicated mental health situation.”

For years, Papini insisted she was kidnapped, lying to federal investigators, and all the while, fraudulently collecting tens of thousands of dollars from the California Victim Compensation Board. In 2022, Papini was finally arrested and charged with making false statements to federal officers, and mail fraud. The prosecution said Papini planned the hoax in great detail, and was with her ex-boyfriend in Southern California until she told him she wanted to go home.

Papini’s ex-boyfriend said she encouraged him to injure her, but most of her injuries were self-inflicted, and that he branded her shoulder at her request. Papini eventually pleaded guilty, signed a plea deal, and spent 18 months in prison. She also paid a $300,000 fine.

What happened to Sherri Papini’s husband? 4xb62

Sherri Papini’s husband Keith Papini, who will appear in the new Hulu documentary, divorced Sherri in 2022, when she itted what she’d done, and sought full custody of their two children. “[D]o you think I want her anywhere around my kids or around me at all at this point">Keith was abusing her.