Arizona woman pleads guilty to fake pregnancy scheme targeting former Bachelor star
Laura Owens pleaded guilty to multiple felony charges after detectives say she faked twin pregnancies and medical records to target men, including former Bachelor star Clayton Echard.
PHOENIX - It has been a long legal battle for a former reality TV star and another man, but on Friday, Aug. 28, an Arizona woman pleaded guilty to four felony counts involving fake pregnancy claims.
Reaction is coming in from the attorney who represented the victims.
What we know:
The story could easily become a movie about a woman, 35-year-old Laura Owens, who detectives say faked pregnancies and kept lying in an effort to continue relationships with men.
One of those men is former "Bachelor" star Clayton Echard. His attorney is Gregg Woodnick.
"Clayton's exhausted by this. I've been spending time with him on and off for years since this first happened. I remember the first day I met him, when Laura was, you know, faking pregnancy essentially with twins and knowing that she had done that before to at least one other victim," Woodnick said.
Instead of going to trial, she pleaded guilty.
"It's been a lot of years of watching Laura do a lot of damage to a lot of men. She faked medical records. She fakes medical conditions. She's faking pregnancy. She faked twin pregnancies multiple times, and it finally caught up to her," he said.
READ MORE: Former Bachelor Clayton Echard reacts to Laura Owens' fraud indictment
Former Bachelor Clayton Echard reacts to Laura Owens' fraud indictment
Clayton Echard, a former Bachelor, says a weight has been lifted after his accuser was indicted on felony charges. Laura Owens is accused of lying about being pregnant with his child.
Dig deeper:
Owens pleaded guilty to two counts of fraudulent schemes, one count of perjury, and one count of taking another person's identity.
"Sitting in the courtroom next to Clayton and one of the other victims was a lot today was, I think, emotional for the two victims that were present in the courtroom. It was a little emotional for me. It's been quite a ride and watching her finally come in and sit there in court and acknowledge the major felonies and the harm that she's done was a big deal," Woodnick said.
Owens will be sentenced in October. She is facing up to 12 and a half years in prison.
"I do anticipate that she's going to have some sort of jail consequence, and she deserves jail consequence. Society would be better if she were consequence by being in jail for a while so that we could have some assurance that there wouldn't be other victims," Woodnick said.