The California Mom’s Wild Claims
Papini alleged her armed abductors forced her into a dark SUV, put a pillowcase over her head and drove her to an unknown location where they chained her to a metal pole in a closet within a boarded-up room, according to court documents.
She claimed the kidnappers would play “really annoying Mexican music” and fed her rice and tortillas that “tasted horrible” and like “crap.” Papini said she was forced to use the bathroom in a bucket filled with kitty litter and would shower at gunpoint.
She alleged she was beat and branded on her shoulder after an unsuccessful escape attempt. Papini alleged that her captors chopped her hair off and told her according to court documents, “No one’s gonna find you, they don’t believe you, they think you just ran away, the police are not looking for you.”
Papini told investigators she believed she was going to be sex trafficked to someone in law enforcement, but 22 days later, on Thanksgiving Day, she was forced back into the SUV and dropped off on a rural road.
A truck driver found her walking, still chained at the waist and visibly bruised, beaten and emaciated. The driver called 911 and Papini was subsequently reunited with her husband and kids.
How Sherri Papini’s Story Unraveled
For four years as authorities worked to identify her alleged attackers, Papini stood by her elaborate kidnapping claims.
But during the investigation, her allegations began to unravel.
Authorities said Papini was hesitant to work with them and would withhold information.
"I think, ultimately, being able to look at each piece of evidence now with the clarity of what was going on, not just in the moments, but the drama or the theatrics that Sherri brought with every step of this investigation was really part of the undoing,” Shasta County Sheriff Sgt. Kyle Wallace told Dateline in 2022.
DNA collected from her clothing led investigators to ex-boyfriend, James Reyes, who told investigators he picked Papini up from her home in November 2016 and drove her to his place in Costa Mesa, Calif., where she stayed with him for three weeks.
He admitted the pair had been in contact prior to her disappearance.
Reyes claimed Papini’s injuries were self-inflicted, and she asked him to hit her so it would look like she was abused. Instead, he held a hockey stick for her to run into. Reyes admitted he branded her, but at her request.
"I think the easiest way to describe it is he was doing what a friend asked," Wallace said. "Because she asked to be hit, she asked to be burned, and he just went along with what she said, it’s two consenting adults.”
By Thanksgiving, Papini said she missed her kids, and Reyes dropped her off in Yolo County, Calif., about 150 miles from her home.
During their time together, he claimed their relationship was not sexual.
Sherri Papini Gets Caught in Her Lie
Prosecutors said Papini spent more than a year plotting her fake kidnapping.
She convinced Reyes, who she dated 10 years prior, that she was in an abusive relationship and enlisted his help to “run away.”
"She was trying to get away from her husband,” Reyes told investigators, per ABC News.
In doing so, she left behind her two kids.
During the investigation, friends told authorities that Papini used to run away when she was younger and “would make up lies, particularly about being the victim of abuse,” according to court documents. She also “told stories to try to get people’s attention,” one person alleged.
In April 2022, Papini was charged with 34 counts of mail fraud and a single count of making false statements.
As part of a plea agreement, she pleaded guilty to one count each of mail fraud and making false statements.
She was also ordered to pay more than $300,000 in restitution, which included repayment for victim compensation and investigative costs.
Is Sherri Papini Still Married?
“I must act decisively to protect my children from the trauma caused by their mother and bring stability and calm to their lives,” he wrote in his court filing, in part. “Both I and especially our children were traumatized by her disappearance, and I spent much time and money trying to find my wife.”
Their divorce was finalized in May 2023, and Keith was granted sole custody of their kids.
A year later, he said he didn’t think he would ever be able to forgive her.
As part of an ongoing custody dispute, Papini and Keith’s attorneys last appeared in court in January 2026, according to reports. Papini recently petitioned for increased visitation rights with one child and sought to be reunited with another.
Sherri Papini Today
Papini sat down with ABC News in June 2025 to promote her book, Sherri Papini Doesn't Exist, and shifted the blame for her disappearance on her ex-boyfriend, despite her earlier guilty plea.
“There are several versions of what happened out there,” she alleged.
Papini claimed she previously admitted fault for her disappearance because she was afraid of Reyes and her now ex-husband, Keith, with whom she claimed she was in an emotionally abusive and controlling marriage.
Instead, she said incarceration was the “safer” option.
"I'd prefer prison over telling Keith Papini that I was having an emotional affair,” Papini said.
