Woman Arrested After Tricking People Into Believing She Had Cancer

Lying isn’t always a crime, but when thousands of dollars come pouring in to support someone who lied about dying of cancer, people are going to be pretty pissed. Especially if they also shaved their heads and got tattoos in support of their ill friend. Would anyone really do that, you ask? Meet Meaghan Hudson of Chula Vista, California.

In 2013, Hudson told her friends that she had cancer. According to one, she even insinuated that she had less than a year to live. Then, for the next year, she took donations. her parents, who were also under the impression she was dying, set up a fundraiser and over the course of a year Hudson collected over $7,000. But that wasn’t the worst of it. Money is bad enough, but Hudson also didn’t stop her friends from shaving their heads or getting tattoos in her honor.

From NBC 7:

Whild was Hudson’s closest friend from their high school days in Dayton, Ohio. She and other friends rallied support by shaving their heads.

They got tattoos that read “sing on” - part of a chorus they all sang together as teenagers.

“It’s not like she said, ‘Oh no. Don’t get that tattoo,’” Whild said. “She was all for it. I know she thoroughly enjoyed being the center of it all.”

The lie was first discovered in July of last year when an anonymous tipster told police that Hudson was faking her diagnosis. Investigators confronted her and she admitted to the ruse. She was arrested on charges of felony theft and deception and while she’s currently out on bond; she is due to appear in court on April 29th.

Currently, no one is talking to Hudson aside from her roommate. Her friends have broken contact and even her parents haven’t talked to her since they were clued into what was going on. Hudson’s stepmother, who lives in Texas, told NBC 7 that Hudson has a history of “lying for attention.”

Hudson refused to speak to reporters but her roommate said that she feels like “the world is hating on her,” which isn’t untrue. Hudson’s parents have promised to return the money of those who gave, but that’s not likely to repair much, certainly not the deeper problem that Hudson seems to be harboring.

Contact the author at mark.shrayber@jezebel.com.