The Kendra Licari case is the Michigan prosecution of a mother who spent roughly 15 months sending anonymous, threatening text messages to her own 13-year-old daughter, Lauryn, and Lauryn’s boyfriend, Owen McKenny. Licari pleaded guilty to two counts of stalking a minor in March 2023, was sentenced to 19 months to five years in prison, and was paroled in August 2024.
What Kendra Licari Did
Lauryn Licari and Owen McKenny first started receiving threatening texts from an unknown number in the fall of 2020, when both were 13. The messages paused, then resumed in September 2021 and continued daily for about 15 months. At the peak, the two teenagers were getting 40 to 50 messages a day.1People. Where Is Lauryn Licari Now
The content was brutal. The texts attacked the teens’ appearance, intelligence, and relationship, included sexually explicit material aimed at the minors, and at one point told Lauryn to kill herself.1People. Where Is Lauryn Licari Now The sender used a number-spoofing app to rotate through multiple area codes, making the texts appear to come from different people, including Lauryn’s classmates.2Time. Unknown Number The High School Catfish True Story The details were personal enough that the sender clearly knew the teens well, but neither could identify who it was.
The harassment did real damage. Owen said he became paranoid at school and lost trust in the people around him.3People. Where Is Owen McKenny Now Lauryn grew insecure and began questioning Owen’s loyalty. The two broke up in November 2021. The messages kept coming anyway.4Variety. Unknown Number The High School Catfish
Throughout all of this, Kendra Licari was working alongside school officials and Owen’s parents, appearing to help figure out who was tormenting the kids.5The Morning Sun. Mt. Pleasant Woman Charged in Catfishing Scheme Involving Her Daughter
How She Was Caught
Beal City Public Schools first treated the situation as cyberbullying and interviewed suspected students, all of whom were quickly cleared. In mid-January 2022, administrators handed the case to law enforcement, including the Michigan State Police and an FBI analyst.6Michigan’s Thumb. Netflix Unknown Number Superintendent Isabella County Sheriff Mike Main led the investigation.7Netflix. Where Are Lauryn and Kendra Licari Now
Investigators traced the messages by IP address. One investigator noted that Kendra Licari’s IP “was popping in and out right before and right after these messages were going through.”8ABC11. Mom Harasses Daughter Kendra Licari Catfishes Facing Charges By late April or early May 2022, police had told Superintendent William Chilman they believed Licari was the sender.9ABC News. Mother Facing Charges After Allegedly Cyberbullying Daughter
In August 2022, officers arrived at the Licari home with a search warrant to seize electronic devices. Kendra admitted almost immediately to sending the messages. Body camera footage from that day, later included in the Netflix documentary, showed Lauryn in disbelief and her father, Shawn Licari, visibly furious.10People. Where Is Kendra Licari Now
Charges, Plea, and Sentence
Kendra Licari was formally arrested on December 12, 2022, and released on a $5,000 bond.9ABC News. Mother Facing Charges After Allegedly Cyberbullying Daughter Isabella County Prosecuting Attorney David Barberi filed five counts: two counts of stalking a minor, two counts of using a computer to commit a crime, and one count of obstruction of justice. The obstruction charge stemmed from her efforts to convince investigators that one of the victims had sent the messages, effectively trying to frame a teenager for her own conduct.11The Morning Sun. Catfishing Mom Sentenced to Prison
In March 2023, Licari pleaded guilty to the two stalking counts. In exchange, the remaining three charges were dropped. Barberi said the plea spared the victims from having to testify.12San Bernardino Sun. Catfishing Mom Sentenced to Prison
On April 26, 2023, Judge Mark Duthie of the Isabella County Trial Court sentenced Licari to 19 months to five years in prison.12San Bernardino Sun. Catfishing Mom Sentenced to Prison Duthie called it “a truly horrible case” and the messages “disturbing and hateful,” saying, “I can’t imagine any parent saying such horrible things to her own daughter.” He rejected any suggestion of jail time and probation, telling Licari, “There’s no way you were going to walk out of here today. You’ve earned a prison sentence.” He described the stalking as a “well-thought out scheme” and noted that a trial conviction on all five original counts would have carried consecutive rather than concurrent time.11The Morning Sun. Catfishing Mom Sentenced to Prison Licari was taken into custody at the end of the hearing.
What She Said About Why
In interviews for the Netflix documentary, Kendra Licari blamed unresolved childhood trauma, specifically an assault she said she experienced as a teenager. She said that as Lauryn neared the same age, the memories resurfaced and she became terrified for her daughter, that she “wanted to try to control the outcome of her journey” and was “afraid of letting her grow up.”10People. Where Is Kendra Licari Now
She also claimed she was not the original sender, saying she began texting 11 months into an existing harassment campaign, initially to provoke a response that might expose whoever started it, and that “then it just kept going.”10People. Where Is Kendra Licari Now No independent evidence has corroborated that. Asked in the documentary why she sent messages telling her daughter to kill herself, she did not give a clear answer.2Time. Unknown Number The High School Catfish True Story
Where Things Stand Now
Kendra Licari was released on parole on August 8, 2024, after serving roughly 16 months. Her parole conditions require her to remain in Michigan, submit to drug and alcohol testing, and seek and maintain employment. Under the plea agreement, she is barred from contact with Lauryn. Her parole was set to run through February 2026.13Today. Kendra Licari Now
Lauryn has spoken publicly about the aftermath, describing the discovery in stages: “The shock feeling turned into sad, which turned into mad, which turned into crazy.” She said the absence of a relationship with her mother is “really hurting” her and that she feels she is “missing a part of me.”1People. Where Is Lauryn Licari Now
Owen and Lauryn have not stayed in touch. Owen told an interviewer, “It’s crazy how having a phone could become the worst thing that happened to me.” He graduated from Beal City High School in May 2025 and committed to play baseball at Hope College in Holland, Michigan.3People. Where Is Owen McKenny Now
The Netflix Documentary
The case is the subject of Unknown Number: The High School Catfish, a 95-minute documentary directed by Skye Borgman and released on Netflix on August 29, 2025.14Netflix. Unknown Number Documentary Release Date News Produced by Campfire Studios in association with Terminal B TV, the film features interviews with Lauryn, Owen, their families, school officials, law enforcement, and Kendra Licari herself, along with the police body camera footage from the August 2022 confrontation.10People. Where Is Kendra Licari Now
The documentary became one of Netflix’s most-watched titles after release. Critical response was mixed to negative, with some reviewers faulting the film for structuring the story as a mystery when the perpetrator was already known, for not pressing harder on Kendra’s explanations, and for including little expert psychological analysis.15USA Today. Netflix Unknown Number Mom Cyberbullying