Remember the Colorado mother who faked her son's cancer to collect thousands of dollars in donations? On Tuesday, she was sentenced to five years probation and 90 days in jail with work release.
Probation, jail time for mom who faked son's cancer
Sandy Nguyen convinced her 6-year-old son that he was suffering from leukemia, faking his cancer for over a year and scamming his school into raising more than $25,000 in community donations for his treatment. In September, she pleaded guilty to one count of charitable fraud and one count of child abuse.
Perhaps worst of all, the kid wasn't just playing along -- his mom had convinced him that he had leukemia, and he truly believed he was dying. Nguyen shaved his head every day, and the boy apparently thought he was getting chemotherapy while he slept at night.
Investigators say Nguyen faked her son's leukemia for over a year, accepting community donations for his treatment.
Court records show the boy's school - Rolling Hills Elementary School - raised money to help him with treatment. The principal of the school told investigators that 100 percent of the students, more than 600 of them , volunteered to help. Some kids gave up their allowance money and asked grandparents for help.
Her arrest affidavit says investigators found $23,000 in cash in her closet. Court records say the family took a trip to Disneyland in October 2013 using raised money.
Court records show Nguyen used Facebook to relay her son's condition, talking about his procedures, including the need for bone-marrow treatment and receiving care at Children's Hospital of Denver.
The investigation into Nguyen's story started after she was overheard -- by a doctor at Children's Hospital of Denver's oncology unit -- talking about the boy's illness at work. Her story simply didn't add up.
Nguyen was arrested in March. According to court documents, her husband apparently wasn't aware of the scheme. Seriously? But that's just one of the many incredible elements of this story. In the end, I'm just glad that kid doesn't have cancer, real or fake, and mom's going to have some time to think about her shitty scam.
More here: Mom who faked son's cancer and used donations to take family to Disneyland is sentenced to jail