Featured Image Credit: Netflix
Topics: Netflix, True Crime, Parenting, US News, Documentaries, TV And Film, Real Life
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Madison Burgess
Topics: Netflix, True Crime, Parenting, US News, Documentaries, TV And Film, Real Life
Warning: This article contains spoilers for Unknown Number: The High School Catfish
A shocking new Netflix documentary has brought to light the true story of a teenage girl who was cyberbullied by her own mother - and exposed the horrific messages she sent.
Unknown Number: The High School Catfish, which dropped onto the streaming platform last week on 29 August, delved into the case of Lauryn Licari and her mother, Kendra.
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In October 2020, Lauryn, who was 13 at the time, and her then-boyfriend Owen McKenny began receiving worrying text messages from an unknown number. After initial suspicious texts claiming that Owen was going to break up with Lauryn, the bullying subsided for a while before resuming in September 2021.
The teenage couple were inundated with 'hundreds of thousands' of abusive messages, with no idea who was sending them.
Everyone involved was floored when the FBI discovered that the culprit was someone that nobody expected - Lauryn's mother, Kendra.
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The story rocked the small community of Beal City, Michigan, so much so that Netflix made a whole show about it.
The 44-year-old insisted she hadn't sent the initial text messages about her daughter's relationship but admitted she was the one who carried them on once they started again - and revealed she would spend between one and eight hours a day texting Lauryn and Owen.
Speaking in the TV show, Kendra explained: "'I started in the thoughts of needing some answers, and then I just kept going, it was a spiral, kind of a snowball effect, I don't think I knew how to stop.
"I was somebody different in those moments. I was in an awful place mentally. It was like I had a mask on or something, I didn't even know who I was."
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In December 2022, the mother was arrested and charged with multiple counts of stalking and using a computer to commit a crime.
She pleaded guilty to two counts of stalking a minor and was subsequently sentenced to 19 months to five years behind bars, before being released on 8 August 2024.
Licari has since expressed regret for her actions, as she says in the documentary that she is 'very disappointed' in herself and feels like she has let herself and her family down (via Today.com).
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In the documentary, some of the messages Lauryn received were revealed - and they are truly astounding.
One text reads: "Hi Lauryn, Owen is breaking up with you. He no longer likes you and hasn't liked you for a while.
"It's obvious he wants me. He laughs, smiles, and touches my hair. We are both down to f**k. You are a sweet girl, but I know I can give him what he wants, sorry, not sorry."
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And one that followed months later says: "How's the happy couple? Preparing for the end of a golden relationship? We hear about how you are the forever couple.
"Owen loves me, and I will always be the girl he loves. He will be with me while your lonely, ugly a** is alone."
In the show, Lauryn recalled that she was getting at least six text messages a day - another read: "Trash b****, don't wear leggings ain't no one want to see your anorexic flat a**."
Discussing the messages' devastating impact, she said: 'I would question what I'd wear to school/ It definitely affected how I thought about myself."
As per MailOnline, other texts included: 'He thinks you're ugly', 'He thinks you're trash', and 'You're worthless'.
One particular horrific message even instructed the teen to end her life, reading: "'Finish yourself or we will #bang."
Unknown Number: The High School Catfish is available to watch on Netflix now.