Everything Amanda Riley lied about and where she is now: new details of cancer faker's twisted true story

BBC Two's new documentary series Scamanda (based on the popular podcast of the same name) revisits one of the most shocking cancer fraud cases in recent memory: the story of Amanda Riley, a California mum, teacher and churchgoer who spent years convincing friends, family and strangers that she was dying of cancer – and happily taking over $100,000 (around £74,000) in donations along the way.

The four-part series features Amanda's former friends, police officials working on her case and journalists Charlie Webster and Nancy Moscatiello, who both propelled her deceit into the spotlight. It follows the years-long investigation that eventually exposed Amanda's lies and led to a prison sentence.

Here's everything you need to know about Amanda Riley, what she lied about and what her life is like today.

Amanda Riley (née Maneri) grew up in southern California and later became a teacher. She married Cory Riley and became stepmother to his daughter, Jessa, before the couple welcomed two sons together. According to people who knew her, Amanda had a long history of telling elaborate stories about herself, years before she ever claimed to have cancer.

By 2012, Amanda and Cory were active members of Family Community Church (FCC), a California megachurch where Amanda was popular and well-known within the congregation. She would regularly appear on-stage in the church to talk about how cancer was a 'blessing' in disguise, as it had brought her so much closer to God.

In 2012, Amanda launched a blog called My Story... Our Journey and claimed she had Hodgkin lymphoma, a cancer affecting the lymphatic system. She documented what she described as gruelling treatments, emergency hospital visits, relapses and miraculous recoveries.

Supporters followed her story online, while the hashtag #TeamAmanda gained traction in her local community. Restaurants hosted fundraisers, church members organised support events and a viral video set to Rachel Platten's Fight Song featured people holding signs in solidarity with her.

Amanda frequently posted photographs of herself in hospital gowns and appeared to document chemotherapy treatments. However, investigators later discovered she had never been diagnosed with cancer at all – according to authorities, she forged medical records, fabricated treatment updates and staged photographs to support her claims.

As well as claiming her condition had spread, Amanda also said she had entered remission, announced relapses and at one stage told supporters she was pausing treatment because she was pregnant.

Over the course of the scam, Amanda received more than 440 cash donations and dozens of cheque payments. Court records show she fraudulently obtained more than $105,000 through online donations alone, while also receiving gifts, services, trips and other support from members of the public.

Former supporters included church members, cancer survivors and families who believed they were helping a young mother fight a terminal illness. One family donated $500 a month, while another supporter in the Scamanda docuseries later estimated she had given almost $20,000.

In one of her blog posts, dated November 2015, Amanda wrote: "We're getting blindsided with additional costs that we hadn't planned and saved for because we didn't know, and I was was told 3 different times today 'Oh man, your scans are bad. Do they think it will still work?'

"Part of me just wanted to throw in the towel. A big part of me if I'm being authentic. It's too much, the boulder on my back is too heavy and I'm all alone. Then someone called saying someone was dropping off food to Cory and the kids, and someone else called saying they were going to babysit and help. It reminded me that I'm not doing this for me, this fight is for all of you. My family, my kids, my friends, my church, and my God. I am not, and never have been alone. I have an army fighting behind me that I am so blessed and thankful for."

The first major doubts came from former friend Lisa Berry, who noticed inconsistencies in Amanda's story. Amanda had allegedly told her she was diagnosed with cancer in 2010, yet later claimed on her blog that the diagnosis happened in 2012. Lisa also became suspicious when Amanda requested money for a supposedly life-saving blood test and made increasingly implausible medical claims.

In 2015, Lisa anonymously contacted television producer Nancy Moscatiello, who had lost her own sister to cancer. Nancy began investigating Amanda's claims and spent years examining blog posts, medical statements and fundraising appeals.

After gathering evidence, Nancy took her findings to police. Detective José Martinez initially faced difficulties because medical records were protected by privacy laws. However, investigators eventually discovered that City of Hope Hospital — one facility where Amanda claimed she was receiving treatment — had no record of her ever being a patient. Authorities later subpoenaed multiple medical facilities and found no evidence Amanda had ever been treated for cancer.

With this vital confirmation, the case shifted to financial fraud and investigators concluded that donations had been obtained through deliberate deception. Amanda's home was searched by police in September 2016, before federal prosecutors later filed criminal charges.

Amanda was charged with wire fraud in 2020. Although she initially pleaded not guilty, she later admitted the truth.

In court documents, she acknowledged: "In truth, as I knew, I did not have Hodgkin's lymphoma and have never been diagnosed with or treated for Hodgkin's lymphoma or any other type of cancer."

At her sentencing, Amanda told the court: "This is the worst thing I've ever done and the worst mistake I could have made."

In May 2022, she was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution to her victims. The judge described her as a "significant risk" and said, "I do believe that this will happen again."

Amanda was released from a federal prison in Texas in December 2024 and transferred to a residential re-entry centre in southern California to complete the remainder of her sentence.

Amanda's husband Cory filed for divorce in January 2024 after standing by her throughout much of the investigation and legal process. He has never been charged with any crime and has largely remained out of the public eye.

Amanda declined to participate in the BBC documentary and has maintained that no other members of her family were involved in the fraud. Nobody else has been charged in connection with the case.

Watch Scamanda on BBC iPlayer now