The shocking truth behind a California mum’s infamous abduction

Sherri Papini was celebrated when she survived a kidnapping ordeal, but the facts were far from what she’d led people to believe

- GAIL SHORTLAND

When Sherri Papini vanished, she became one of the most recognised women in California. Her photo was on missing posters, details of her disappearance were circulated on social media and news reports gave constant updates on the search to find her. The whole of the US was asking, “Where is Sherri Papini?”

Papini, then 34, lived in Redding, California with her husband Keith. They’d been married for seven years and had two young children, a boy and a girl. Keith worked for an electrical retailer and Papini was a stay-at-home mum.

On 2 November, 2016, while her children were at nursery, Papini went for a run. When Keith returned from work, Papini wasn’t there and she hadn’t collected the children. Concerned, Keith used the Find My iPhone app and tracked her phone and earbuds to an intersection about a mile from their home. They looked as though they’d been dropped in a hurry. Papini was reported missing.

Within hours, a huge missing person’s case was launched. Pleas for information about Papini made the national news and her face was splashed across the front pages of newspapers. Keith made public appeals for his wife’s safe return and her family offered a $40,000 reward. As the community formed search parties, raised money and kept the case in the spotlight, they didn’t give up hope – and that faith was rewarded.

On 24 November, Thanksgiving morning, a motorist found Papini wandering along a road in Yolo County, about 150 miles from where she’d vanished. She was partially bound with a chain, was covered in bruises and her hair had been hacked off, but after 22 days missing, she was alive.