The story of a teenage girl who endured a year of online bullying took a surprising turn when she discovered that the anonymous harasser was actually her own mother.
Kendra Gail Licari, residing in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, USA, was recently charged after an extensive year-long investigation involving FBI experts to trace the individual responsible for the troubling messages.
Despite the culprit’s attempts to conceal their activity using a VPN and employing language typical of a teenager, investigators ultimately connected the messages to Licari.
It was revealed that Licari had allegedly reported the bullying to authorities after her daughter sought her help. She went as far as joining forces with her daughter’s then-boyfriend’s mother to identify the cyberbully who had been bombarding the victim with multiple messages each day.
Initially, the school and local law enforcement were unable to resolve the situation due to limited resources.
Isabella County prosecutor David Barberi described the case as bizarre and almost unbelievable, highlighting the sustained and abusive nature of the messages, consisting of hundreds of texts and over 1,000 pages of discovery in the case.
The messages were characterized as harassing, demeaning, and demoralizing in nature. Following FBI’s confirmation that the messages originated from Licari’s phone, she admitted to targeting her daughter and the boy with the bullying campaign during questioning.
During the time of the offenses, Licari was a basketball coach at her daughter’s school, according to Beal City school superintendent William Chilman.
Licari was arraigned on December 12 and has been released on a $5,000 bond. Using a computer to commit a crime is a felony in the US, carrying a potential 10-year jail sentence. Licari has also been charged with stalking a minor and obstruction of justice – both of which could carry a further five years behind bars.
Licari’s court appearance is scheduled for December 29, during which prosecutors will determine the sufficiency of evidence to proceed to trial.
