Kidnapping Hoaxer Sherri Papini Sought Restraining Order For Online Critic

Sherri Papini is no stranger to the courtroom. The Redding, California wife and mother who was convicted of lying to federal agents about the details of her allegedly faked kidnapping—a case that’s drawn comparisons to the book and movie Gone Girl—spent time in front of a judge when she was sentenced to 18 months in prison over the hoax; she’s subsequently been in and out of the courthouse as she battles her ex-husband, Keith Papini, over custody of the couple’s two children. But this week, she returned to the docket for two different cases: to address a restraining order against a woman who’s been allegedly attacking her online, and after her ex-boyfriend evicted her from the Shasta County home that he owns.

Papini first reached national fame in November 2016, when she disappeared during a run near her Redding home. As detailed in 2024’s Hulu docuseries Perfect Wife: The Mysterious Disappearance of Sherri Papini, authorities say that while Keith mounted an increasingly frantic search for her, Sherri was at the SoCal home of her ex-boyfriend, James Reyes. She reappeared on Thanksgiving Day, claiming she’d been abducted and tortured by a pair of Hispanic women, a claim that FBI agents later revealed to be false. When the deception was revealed, Keith filed for divorce.

Sherri didn’t participate in Perfect Wife. But in a second docuseries released last month, Sherri Papini: Caught in the Lie, Sherri now claims that Reyes abducted and abused her after the two began an “emotional affair” as her relationship with Keith crumbled. According to Sherri, she initially lied about who kidnapped her out of fear that Keith would discover her early contact with Reyes and end their relationship. Reyes denies Sherri’s version of events, and he’s never been arrested or charged in the case.

Sherri was released from prison in 2023, and at some point after that, she reportedly entered into a relationship with a man named Shawn Hibdon. According to the Record-Searchlight, while the two were dating, Papini moved into a home Hibdon owns in the small NorCal town of Shingletown. But the two parted ways, and in January Hibdon moved to formally evict her.

But according to Papini, this is another situation in which she has been targeted. “The plaintiff (Hibdon) has made threats both implied and explicit ― that unless I purchase the home under specific, unfavorable terms, I will be evicted, publicly humiliated or face further harm to my personal financial well-being,” Papini said in a court filing.

Hibdon denies Papini’s allegations. His attorney, Elizabeth Elizondo, said via statement that Papini “threatened to involve the media if settlement negotiations were not pursued under her terms. There were also threats to release potentially embarrassing messages involving the plaintiff … These actions appear to be aimed at publicly humiliating the plaintiff — the very thing she has accused us of doing to her.”

On Friday, Papini—who is representing herself—asked to meet with the judge privately to discuss the eviction case, but was denied. The case is ongoing.

But just a few days before, another case involving Papini was dismissed, this one involving her current boyfriend, Anthony Bickel. According to the Record-Searchlight, Papini was in Shasta County Superior Court on Wednesday, where she alleged that a fellow Shingletown resident, Katherine Parrick, had defamed her online, and had driven by her home and taken photos of her gate. According to a fundraiser mounted by Parrick, Bickel, her partner of 16 years, left her for Papini in recent months, allegedly leaving her and her 11-year-old daughter homeless.

“I was simply telling my story,” Parrick told reporters outside the courtroom. “I think she wanted me to shut the heck up, because she’s trying to portray a new image to the world, and by me telling the truth, it shows that her image is false.”

After a conversation with both parties’ attorneys, Commissioner John Berglund dismissed the case, and had a stern admonishment for both women. “Both of you live in a small town,” he said. “It is important for both of you to remember how your actions affect others.”

Papini attorney Chase Kinney (who also appears in Caught in the Lie) says via statement that Sherri took out the restraining order “because she wanted the harassment and exploitation of her name — and that of a minor child — to stop… By dismissing the restraining order, Ms. Papini avoids further feeding into unnecessary drama and preserves her energy for what truly matters: her children and her future.”