261:, where she was picked up by local police. Her family publicly thanked the media for getting through to the kidnappers. Later, during FBI interrogation, Wilbanks admitted that she had not been abducted, but needed time and space to escape the pressures of her upcoming wedding. On May 9 Wilbanks entered a treatment facility "to address physical and mental issues which, she believes, played a major role in her running from herself."
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jitters," but the search continued. The mayor of Duluth later reported the city spent between $ 40,000 and $ 60,000 in the search. Police received numerous pieces of evidence that later turned out to be false leads, including large clumps of dark brown hair in an area next to a retention pond, a variety of clothing, and purported murder weapons.
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Nearly two years after
Wilbanks ran away, the incident was used by the Albuquerque Police Department as a means of attracting new recruits to the police force. The police department used the image of a bride in a white wedding dress and veil being apprehended by Police Officer Trish Hoffman, posted
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On April 26, 2005, Mason notified police that
Wilbanks was missing two hours after she failed to return from her evening jog. The next day, on April 27, 250 people took part in the search for Wilbanks. Local police speculated publicly that Wilbanks' disappearance might be "a case of the premarital
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to negotiate the sale of the couple's story to a publisher in New York. According to her, Mason negotiated a deal for $ 500,000 and then used the money to buy a house, in his name only, from which he later evicted
Wilbanks. She claimed $ 250,000 as her share of the house, and another $ 250,000 in
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On April 29, Wilbanks' relatives offered a $ 100,000 reward and planned vigils. Later that day, Wilbanks called Mason from a pay phone and told him that she had been kidnapped, but had just been released. She also called 911, declaring in a frantic voice that she had been kidnapped and sexually
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Herobuilders, a manufacturer of action figures, rushed to produce a doll representing
Wilbanks, wearing a jogging suit bearing the slogan "Vegas baby". It came with a small towel, to put over the doll's head, to model how she appeared on TV when in the custody of Albuquerque Police.
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assaulted by a
Hispanic man and a Caucasian woman in their 40s driving a blue van. When asked if she knew what direction her captors went after setting her free, she said, "I have no idea. I don't even know where I am." The calls were traced to a pay phone at a
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on April 26, 2005, to avoid her wedding with John Mason, her fiancé, on April 30. Her disappearance sparked a nationwide search and intensive media coverage, including media speculation that Mason had killed her. On April 29, Wilbanks called Mason from
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On March 15, 2008, Wilbanks's ex-fiancé, John Mason, married another woman in a quiet ceremony at his parents' home in Duluth, Georgia. In June 2010, Wilbanks announced via
Facebook that she had been in a relationship since early in 2009.
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on a billboard with the advertisement reading "Running away from your current job? Call APD Recruiting" followed by the police department's telephone number. Hoffman was the officer who was pictured in the media leading
Wilbanks through
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Wilbanks gained notoriety in the United States and internationally, and her story persisted as a major topic of national news coverage for some time after she was found unharmed. Many critics of the mass media attacked the coverage as a
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Wilbanks has inspired a "Runaway Bride" action figure and a hot sauce called "Jennifer's High Tailin' Hot Sauce". An auction on eBay of a slice of toast carved with a likeness of
Wilbanks closed with a winning bid of $ 15,400.
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Lots of brides are overwhelmed with wedding preparations. And considering
Wilbanks' nuptials were to be a 600 guest affair at the lavish Atlanta Athletic Club, complete with 28 bridal attendants, well, it's understandable,
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According to the BBC, Jennifer
Wilbanks sold the media rights to her story to a New York City company for $ 500,000. Wilbanks did not offer to repay the whole cost of the search for her, which totaled almost $ 43,000.
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On April 28, Major Donald L. Woodruff of the City of Duluth's Police Department announced that because there were no other explanations, Wilbanks' disappearance was being handled as a criminal investigation. The
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after being taken into custody. The Police Department's reasoning for using the image was the fact that many people would recognize the reference to the incident and that people still talked about the incident.
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interrogation resulting in a felony indictment of providing false information to law enforcement, a charge that could have resulted in up to five years of imprisonment. On June 2, 2005, she pleaded
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Jennifer Wilbanks, the bride-to-be who skipped town just days before her planned wedding in Georgia, has a new starring role in New Mexico -- as the inspiration for a police recruiting billboard.
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He's not the only one cashing in: Herobuilders.com, a Danbury, Conn.-based manufacturer, has sold out of its first batch of 250 Runaway Bride action figures at $ 24.95 each.
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Although the "cold feet" phenomenon is commonly experienced by most couples engaged to be married, extreme cases such as that of Jennifer Wilbanks remain rare.
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In September 2006, Wilbanks filed a lawsuit against her ex-fiancé, claiming that while she was hospitalized and under medication, she granted Mason
169:, she was sentenced to two years of probation and 120 hours of community service, and she was also ordered to pay $ 2,250 in restitution to the
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A musical play based on the story of Jennifer Wilbanks opened on March 13, 2008, at the Red Clay Theater in Duluth, Georgia.
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charge of filing a false police report was dismissed. Wilbanks's criminal record was expunged after her probation ended.
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Wilbanks' case is frequently used as an example, in both scholarly and popular articles and books. In 2012
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wrote that the runaway bride had become a "runaway television embarrassment", comparing the story to a TV
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Wilbanks canceled her engagement to her fiancé on May 17. On May 25 Wilbanks was charged with
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A photo of Wilbanks appears in the trailer of the 2008 movie about professional poker,
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magazine reported that Wilbanks and Mason had officially called off their engagement.
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began its chapter on staged kidnappings by using Wilbanks' case as an example.
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129:(born February 28, 1973), an American woman who ran away from her home in
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Case of Jennifer Wilbanks, who faked a kidnapping to avoid a wedding
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that cited Wilbanks as an example. Diana M. Concannon textbook
401:"Runaway Bride? Why Georgia Isn't Letting Her Off the Hook..."
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658:"Cashing in on runaway bride: Dolls, hot sauce — even toast"
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Wilbanks repeated the false claims that fell apart under
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609:"Runaway Bride's Former Fiance Marries Another Woman"
470:"'Runaway bride' charged with making false statement"
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Sheriff's Department. As part of the plea bargain, a
49:. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
434:"It's to Laugh (or Cry) About: Tragedy or Farce?"
382:, a 2016 abduction hoax in Redding, California
340:'s character has been married to in the past.
715:"Runaway bride inspires New Mexico billboard"
8:
690:"Runaway bride toast attracts auction bread"
627:"Runaway Bride Jennifer Wilbanks Finds Love"
807:"Can Cold Feet Predict Marital Breakdown?"
529:"Wilbanks Agrees to Pay $ 13,000 in Costs"
751:"Runaway Bride Remembered In New Musical"
109:Learn how and when to remove this message
611:. WSB TV. March 19, 2008. Archived from
497:"Runaway bride enters treatment center"
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835:"Kidnapping: An Investigator's Guide"
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584:"Runaway Bride, Groom Drop Lawsuits"
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444:from the original on August 18, 2017
47:adding citations to reliable sources
355:Kidnapping: An Investigator’s Guide
590:. The Associated Press. 2007-01-12
555:"US runaway bride sells her story"
535:from the original on June 29, 2011
509:from the original on 18 April 2021
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476:from the original on May 27, 2005
321:Albuquerque International Sunport
399:Michelle Fabio (December 2009).
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906:False allegations of sex crimes
805:Romeo Vitelli (December 2012).
729:from the original on 2016-04-24
696:from the original on 2014-02-19
668:from the original on 2016-04-23
565:from the original on 2007-02-14
410:from the original on 2016-04-13
249:were now involved in the case.
247:Georgia Bureau of Investigation
165:to this charge. As part of her
34:needs additional citations for
633:. Jun 23, 2010. Archived from
204:format but may read better as
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432:Kurtz, Howard (May 8, 2005).
380:Sherri Papini kidnapping hoax
886:2005 in Georgia (U.S. state)
367:Missing white woman syndrome
901:Hoaxes in the United States
896:People from Duluth, Georgia
833:Diana M. Concannon (2013).
336:, as one of the many women
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692:. CNet News. May 7, 2005.
531:. ABC News. May 31, 2005.
502:United Press International
472:. CNN.com. May 26, 2005.
780:"Apple - Movie Trailers"
656:John Bell (2005-05-14).
349:wrote an article about
911:Formerly missing people
266:making false statements
259:Albuquerque, New Mexico
213:converting this section
136:Albuquerque, New Mexico
127:Jennifer Carol Wilbanks
272:Aftermath and lawsuit
257:convenience store in
795:Apple Movie Trailers
495:UPI (May 10, 2005).
306:Impact of the events
58:"Runaway bride case"
43:improve this article
615:on March 20, 2008.
215:, if appropriate.
123:runaway bride case
291:power of attorney
276:On May 22, 2006,
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41:Please help
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891:2005 hoaxes
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588:11Alive.com
375:(1999 film)
175:misdemeanor
880:Categories
854:2016-04-07
816:2016-04-07
790:2008-01-09
765:2008-03-13
733:2016-04-07
700:2014-02-02
672:2016-04-07
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454:(page B01)
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387:References
163:no contest
152:soap opera
69:newspapers
662:USA Today
404:LegalZoom
351:cold feet
333:The Grand
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539:June 28,
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361:See also
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480:May 25,
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202:list
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243:FBI
159:FBI
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