Tennessee woman sentenced to jail for faking breast cancer to get sick leave, donations

Woman sentenced to jail for faking breast cancer

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — A Tennessee woman who faked breast cancer to get donations of sick leave, money and support services has been sentenced to jail time.

A judge on Monday sentenced 39-year-old Keele (KEE’-lee) Maynor of Chattanooga to 3 1/2 years in jail after she pleaded guilty to theft and forgery as part of a deal with prosecutors.

The former city employee asked for probation at the sentencing so she could work and repay the thousands of dollars worth of sick leave and donations, on top of therapy and service from cancer support groups.

Maynor said in an e-mail when she left her city job in 2008 that her claim of having cancer was a “charade.”

The judge also sentenced her to 10 years of probation after her release and ordered her to pay $54,000 in restitution.