In November 2016, Northern California mom, Sherri Papini, vanished and remained missing for three weeks. She was eventually found alive on the side of a major highway on Thanksgiving morning over 100 miles from where she disappeared. Although recent media reports have questioned Sherri’s past and what happened to her, authorities note there is no evidence that what occurred was a prank or a hoax.

Shasta County Sheriff’s Lt. Pat Kropholler told People, “We work on this case every day.” A detective assigned to Sherri’s case is on it full time, said Kropholler, who also noted, “He works on [it] constantly. He is in constant contact with the Papinis.”

Recent reports that have focused on Sherri’s past and calls to law enforcement going back over a decade, have been denounced by the Papini family and play no part in the investigation, according to Kropholler, who told People the following.

“Nothing from those old log reports [has] anything to do with the current case that has been reported… People have incidents that occur 13, 16 years ago, and it doesn’t mean it has anything to do with today’s incident… There is no evidence here that shows this is a hoax or didn’t occur… We are in contact with the Papinis on a regular basis and following up on leads and analyzing evidence.”

Sherri Papini’s Family Once Called Law Enfrocement About Her: Report https://t.co/OuVtazz887 pic.twitter.com/x0UBlEp1SR — FFS (@fahimdhaka2010) March 30, 2017

Sherri, 34, went missing during an afternoon jog around 2 p.m. near her Redding residence on November 2, 2016. Her husband, Keith Papini, became alarmed when he arrived home from work and the family abode was empty, which was unusual. He then learned Sherri had failed to pick up their two children from daycare, which sent him into panic mode.

Sherri Papini claimed she was kidnapped and tortured for 22 days https://t.co/TrcUakXJNu pic.twitter.com/aytgoRDF6K — infowe (@infowe) March 31, 2017

Keith used a phone app to locate Sherri’s cell phone, which he found on the side of a rural road. He and Sherri’s family then embarked on a massive search for the missing California mother that lasted until she was recovered.

[Image by Poravute/Thinkstock]

Ultimately on Thanksgiving Day at around 4:30 a.m., Sherri, was found on the side of a Yolo County highway about 140 miles from where she was last seen jogging after flagging down a motorist.

Her husband publicly described her condition after she was recovered, saying Sherri had been beaten and branded, she had multiple bruises on her body, her long blond hair had been cut off, and she was emaciated weighing only 87 pounds.

[Image by Kieferpix/Thinkstock]

According to multiple media reports and the local sheriff’s office, Sherri told authorities she had been kidnapped and her captors kept their faces covered most of the time so she was unable to offer many details about them. Nevertheless, Sherri was able to tell law enforcement that two Hispanic women with Spanish accents kidnapped her, one younger with curly hair, thin eyebrows, and pierced ears, and an older female suspect having thick eyebrows and black hair with gray in it.

Authorities have announced that when Sherri was found, she had chain restraints on her and displayed obvious visible injuries. This has led to mass speculation about who could have abducted Sherri and why they did so, with explanations spanning from a serial killer kidnapper to members of a cult trying to brainwash Sherri to join the ranks.

[Image by chai2070/Thinkstock]

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, serial killer profiler John Kelly believes Sherri may have been abducted by a “…serial rapist, serial killer,” a sadistic individual who would prompt Sherri to lie about her kidnapper’s identity out of fear. He thinks that it was “only by an act of God” that Sherri was able to convince her captor to let her go, according to People.

A former FBI profiler, Brad Garrett, told the television news magazine 20/20 back in December 2016 that a cult may have kidnapped Sherri, as reported by the Inquisitr prior. Garrett noted that cults often indoctrinate people using physical abuse and degradation to break an individual down.

Authorities are urging anyone with information about the Sherri Papini case to call 530-245-6540, or the Major Crimes Unit at 530-245-6135. Tips can also be emailed to mcu@co.shasta.ca.us.

[Featured Image by Shasta County Sheriff’s Office]