A Michigan mother was recently arrested for allegedly cyberbullying and catfishing her own daughter and her boyfriend for more than a year.

Cyberbullying is one of the leading social problems of our era, but it’s usually teenagers harassing their peers, often with tragic consequences. However, in one of the most bizarre cases of cyberbullying ever reported, a girls’ basketball coach from Michigan allegedly harassed her own teenage daughter through texts and social media messages for over a year, sending her up to 12 texts and messages a day. When the daughter came to her for help with the constant cyberbullying, the woman was the one who reported it to authorities but tried to place the blame on her peers.

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Kendra Gail Licari, a 42-year-old woman from Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, stands accused of putting her own daughter through hell for more than a year, for reasons that no one, not even her, can explain. She is facing five charges, including two counts of stalking a minor, two counts of using a computer to commit a crime, and one count of obstruction of justice.

Authorities became involved in this case in December of 2021 when Licari herself informed them that her daughter and her boyfriend at the time were being constantly harassed online. She and the boy’s mother worked together to find the person responsible for the cyberbullying, so no one suspected that she was the villain all along.

Investigators found that Kendra Licari’s systematic cyberbullying of her daughter began in early 2021 when she started sending her anonymous threats and hurtful texts, claiming to be someone the girl’s age. She tried to conceal her real identity on the internet, but when police and FBI IT experts got involved they quickly traced the activity to Licari’s IP address.

During the investigation, authorities compiled a 349-page collection of texts and social media messages sent by the 42-year-old woman. After gathering enough evidence, they confronted the woman, and she made a full confession. Her motives, however, remain a mystery.

 

David Barbey, a county prosecutor in charge of this bizarre case, told reporters that someone had coined the term “cyber-Munchausen’s” to describe Kendra Licari’s actions. According to this theory, she cyberbullied her own daughter, so she would need her more, so she could be the one she turned to for help. Licari herself has yet to reveal her motives, and perhaps she never will.

Kendra Licari was arrested earlier this month, but she has since been released on a $5,000 bond. She faces up to 10 years in prison for cyber crimes and another 5 years for stalking and obstruction.