A social media influencer has been convicted of making a false kidnapping report after telling police a Latino couple tried to kidnap her two children from a parking lot.
Katie Sorensen, 31, was convicted of one count of making a false report of a crime, according to the Sonoma County District Attorney's Office, on Thursday, April 27. She was remanded in custody and is being held on $100,000 bail.
Sorensen told Petaluma Police on December 7, 2020, that a Latino couple had tried to take her children from a parking lot outside a Michael's craft store, prosecutors said.
A week later, she recorded an Instagram video that went viral, and appeared on local television talking about what happened and providing details that weren't shared with police.
Police interviewed Sorensen after the video was posted, and she then identified a Petaluma couple as the people who had allegedly attempted to kidnap her kids.
However, investigation proved Sorensen's account to be false after video surveillance from the store and testimony from the accused couple contradicted her account, according to authorities.
"This verdict will enable us to hold Ms Sorensen accountable for her crime, while at the same time helping to exonerate the couple that was falsely accused of having attempted to kidnap two young children," District Attorney Carla Rodriguez said.
"The case is also important in that it illustrates the importance of using social media responsibly."
No sentencing date has yet been set for Sorensen, but she does face a maximum sentence of six months in jail.
Before making her accusations, Sorensen had a modest following on her Instagram account, @motherhoodessentials, where she also posted conspiracy theories.
Her videos about the alleged kidnapping were seen more than four million times, and gained her tens of thousands of new followers after they went viral - however, they have since been deleted.
Sorensen had been charged with three misdemeanour counts of making a false report of a crime - one to a police dispatcher, one to a police officer, and a third to a police detective. She was acquitted on the first two counts and convicted of the third for statements she made to a detective.
She reportedly showed no emotion as the verdict was read, while family members in the court room apparently began sobbing. Sorensen was quickly put in handcuffs and led from the courtroom, she is being held in the Sonoma County jail.
