ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo — Prosecutors filed a motion to dismiss charges against a mother who was accused of helping her daughter fake cancer in an effort to delay criminal proceedings against her. Prosecutors say they now believe her daughter fabricated that too.
Robin Niceta was ultimately convicted in November on charges of attempting to influence a public servant and false reporting of child abuse. Her sentencing has been delayed twice and has yet to happen. It's now set for May 24.
She and her mother Janice Dudley were both indicted in July 2023. According to records filed in court, Niceta and her mother claimed she had been diagnosed with Glioblastoma, the most aggressive and common type of brain cancer and one that is usually deadly.
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Prosecutors said they could not verify medical records that were submitted to the court and found that an IP address belonging to Niceta and her mother was used to create the Facebook pages of New Mexico Oncology Associates and Carey Marquez, the doctor who purportedly diagnosed the brain tumor.
Dudley faced four counts: conspiracy to attempt to influence a public servant and tampering with physical evidence, both felonies, and misdemeanor counts of second-degree forgery and conspiracy to commit second-degree forgery. In a motion dated March 28, prosecutors asked to dismiss those charges.
In their motion, prosecutors wrote that the "ends of justice" would not be served by "continued prosecution" of Dudley. It also noted that Dudley cooperated with the investigation and they've determined that evidence initially established Dudley's culpability was also "fabricated by Robin Niceta."
A review hearing is set for April 8 and the charges could be formally dismissed then.
Niceta, a former Arapahoe County social worker, was initially arrested in 2022 after an anonymous phone tip called into the Arapahoe County Department of Human Services suggested that Aurora City Council member Danielle Jurinsky might have sexually abused her young son. Caseworkers investigated and found that Jurinsky did nothing wrong and closed the case.
Court documents show the anonymous call was traced to Niceta, who at the time was dating the now-former Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson. Niceta was accused of making the call the day after Jurinsky criticized Wilson while speaking on a podcast, calling her “trash,” according to court documents.
Niceta faces the following charges for allegedly faking her cancer and is set for trial in the case later this month.
- Three counts of attempting to influence a public official, all felonies.
- Two count of forgery of a public record, both felonies.
- One count of tampering with physical evidence, a felony.
- One count of criminal impersonation to gain a benefit, a misdemeanor.
- Three counts of misdemeanor forgery.
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