Introduction to the Case
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In September 2021, high school student Lauryn Licari and her boyfriend began receiving cruel text messages from an unknown number. The anonymous notes turned darker and more harassing, according to a new Netflix documentary about the case, “Unknown Number: The High School Catfish.” The documentary includes interviews with Lauryn Licari’s parents, local law enforcement, and FBI officials who eventually got involved in the case.
Lauryn and Owen were targeted by an anonymous cyberbully.
Even after a group of parents, school officials, and the town police got involved, the sender’s identity remained a mystery.
In the meantime, Lauryn Licari’s mom, Kendra Licari, told her daughter not to let the messages consume her. “I was just getting super frustrated with it but my mom was like, ‘Just ignore them. Obviously you’re beautiful.’ Like, she was just encouraging me to not read them,” Lauryn Licari says in the documentary. “I told her just to keep being her and just not even worry about anything, right?” Kendra Licari says in the doc. “I didn’t believe anybody would do anything harmful.”
When the sender’s identity was finally uncovered, it shocked everyone in their tight-knit community.
Director Skye Borgman tells TODAY.com that while her film highlights one “extreme case” of online abuse, the documentary demonstrates more widely “the massive impact cyberbullying has on students, on young people, on friends and families, on parents.”
Who was sending the text messages?
The cyberbully turned out to be Lauryn Licari’s mom, Kendra Licari. In December 2022, Kendra Licari was charged with two counts of stalking a minor, two counts of communicating with another to commit a crime, and one count of obstruction of justice, per an Isabella County arrest warrant obtained by TODAY.com.
Kendra Licari, seen here with Lauryn and Lauryn’s dad, Shawn Licari, had been active in her daughter’s school community.
Licari pleaded guilty to two counts of stalking a minor in March 2023, and the other charges were dismissed, per an Isabella County sentencing document obtained by TODAY.com. She was sentenced in April 2023 on two counts of stalking a minor, per the sentencing document. She was sentenced to a maximum of five years in prison, with a minimum sentence of one year and seven months, per the sentencing document.
What have Lauryn and Kendra Licari said about what happened?
Kendra Licari has expressed remorse about what happened. “I never want to hurt anyone else like I have already done,” she said in a tearful courtroom address before her sentencing. “I actually look forward to continuing my work and continuing my progress daily. I have caused a lot of damage to my family.”
Kendra Licari also participated in the documentary, sitting down for an interview a few months after she was released from prison in 2024. In the documentary, Kendra Licari says she is “very disappointed” in herself, and says she let herself and her family down.
Director Borgman says she was “deeply curious” about Kendra Licari, and says she believes her perspective adds to the complexity of the story. “If she hadn’t been part of the documentary, I think audiences could have written her off a little bit more,” Borgman tells TODAY.com. “And look, they may do that now, but at least they have the opportunity to think about her and to think about what she’s been through.”
That said, Borgman believes Kendra Licari is an unreliable narrator. “I think her memories have sort of changed her version of the truth,” Borgman says. “I think she’s got a little bit of revisionist history. I think some of what she says is the truth. I think some of what she says isn’t truthful, where those two intersect is constantly changing.”
Borgman also says Kendra Licari’s answers sometimes seemed “a little bit rehearsed” when she was challenged on her version of events in her interview. For example, Kendra Licari says that she didn’t send the first threatening messages, but rather jumped in later to try and root out the perpetrator.
Lauryn Licari also opens up in the documentary about her complicated relationship with her mom. On the one hand, she says she has lost trust in her mother, but on the other hand, she still misses having her mom around. “Being without that relationship I think is really hurting me, and I think rebuilding our relationship will help both of us a lot,” Lauryn Licari says in the doc. “I love her more than anything.”
Where are they now?
Kendra Licari was released on parole on Aug. 8, 2024, and will be supervised as a parolee until February 2026, according to her inmate record from the Michigan Department of Corrections.
As part of the conditions of her supervised release, she is not allowed to leave the state and must “make earnest efforts to find and maintain employment,” according to her inmate record. She is also not allowed to see her daughter, per agreements from her plea deal.
At the time she was interviewed for the documentary, Kendra Licari said it had been about a year-and-a-half since she had seen her daughter. In the doc, Lauryn Licari says she wants to see her mom “when the time is right.” “I think I want to trust her now, but I don’t think I can,” Lauryn Licari says. “Now that she’s out, I just want her to get the help she needs so then when we see each other, it doesn’t go back to the old ways and how it was before.”
Kendra Licari says she believes she and her daughter can still have a healthy relationship. “We both know that we’re with each other, no matter what,” she says in the doc.
Meanwhile, Lauryn Licari finished high school this year and is “ready to enter … the next phase of her life,” Borgman tells TODAY.com. According to an update at the end of the film, Lauryn Licari is planning on attending college to study criminology.
Borgman says participating in the documentary was a “big deal” for Lauryn Licari, who wanted to reclaim agency in the telling of her story. As for what Lauryn and Kendra Licari’s relationship might look like going forward? Borgman says that’s “a question for Lauryn.” “She’s an adult now, and she gets to make the decision and she gets to decide if she wants to have a relationship with her mom,” Borgman says. “She gets to decide what her future holds. And I think it’s a really great place for her to be.”
Conclusion
The case of Lauryn Licari and her mother, Kendra Licari, highlights the complexities of cyberbullying and the devastating consequences it can have on families and communities. The documentary "Unknown Number: The High School Catfish" sheds light on the massive impact of online abuse and the importance of addressing it. As Lauryn Licari moves forward with her life, it remains to be seen how her relationship with her mother will unfold.
FAQs
Q: Who was sending the text messages to Lauryn Licari?
A: The text messages were sent by Lauryn’s mother, Kendra Licari.
Q: What charges did Kendra Licari face?
A: Kendra Licari faced charges of stalking a minor, communicating with another to commit a crime, and obstruction of justice.
Q: What was Kendra Licari’s sentence?
A: Kendra Licari was sentenced to a maximum of five years in prison, with a minimum sentence of one year and seven months.
Q: Is Lauryn Licari planning to rebuild her relationship with her mother?
A: Lauryn Licari has expressed a desire to rebuild her relationship with her mother, but only when the time is right and after her mother has received help.
Q: What is Lauryn Licari planning to study in college?
A: Lauryn Licari is planning to study criminology in college.
