Michigan mom arrested for catfishing, stalking her teen daughter and daughter’s boyfriend
A Michigan woman is facing decades behind bars after authorities say she catfished and stalked her teen daughter as well as the girl’s boyfriend.
Kendra Gail Licari, 42, a former basketball coach at her daughter’s school, was arrested and charged Monday with two counts of stalking a minor and two counts of using a computer to commit a crime, The Morning Sun reports.
During the investigation, Licari allegedly tried to frame another minor for what she was doing — for which she’s been charged with one count of obstruction of justice.
The former Beal City Schools employee was released on a $5,000 bond.
Beal City superintendent William Chilman said a cyberbullying complaint was made to the school this time last year — when Licari was still working there, according to the outlet. The complaint concerned her daughter and the girl’s then-boyfriend, according to the newspaper.
Starting early last year, Licari allegedly used private online networks to send the teens harassing messages via text and social media, David Barberi, Isabella County Prosecutor, said Monday, the paper reports.
Both students’ mothers collaborated with officials at the school to determine who was harassing the kids, said Barberi.
Authorities began to suspect Licari was the source of the messages early this spring, said Chilman.
Barberi said the problematic mother confessed to the crimes after authorities confronted her, though a motive is still unknown, according to The Morning Sun.
Licari could face 10 years behind bars for the felony charge of using a computer to commit a crime. The other charges are 5-year felonies.
A term popularized by the MTV show “Catfish,” and the preceding documentary, catfishing is the act of pretending to be someone else online.
Though not always criminal, the deceptive act can precede deadly acts.
Austin Lee Edwards, a former Virginia state trooper, allegedly catfished a 15-year-old girl before killing her mother and grandparents late last month, according to authorities.
