Woman sentenced after faking pregnancies, including with ‘The Bachelor’ contestant

PHOENIX (AZFamily/Gray News) — A woman convicted of tricking men into thinking she was pregnant, including “The Bachelor” contestant Clayton Echard, will spend 30 days behind bars after a plea agreement.

After a plea agreement, prosecutors laid out how they said Laura Owens manipulated the men as she was sentenced.

Echard targeted, prosecutors say

Prosecutors said Laura Owens faked pregnancies to force men into relationships and filed a lawsuit that included several allegations, including abortion coercion and domestic violence. Prosecutors also said Laura Owens stole a woman’s ultrasound and passed it off as her own.

Prosecutors said Laura Owens contacted Echard, a former contestant on “The Bachelor” and Scottsdale realtor, on May 17, 2023, about a real estate deal. The two had oral sex on May 20, prosecutors said, but no intercourse, and Laura Owens claimed she was pregnant on June 1 after obtaining HCG injections from a spa, which she claimed helped improve her skin. She filed for paternity in August 2023, prosecutors said.

“The method that she chose was HCG,” a prosecutor said, describing how she created false positive pregnancy tests.

Stolen ultrasound

Prosecutors said Laura Owens stole a twin ultrasound from Stormy Mitchell, who said she lost one to vanishing twin syndrome.

“It is the only photo I will ever have of my twins together,” Mitchell said in a statement read in court.

Prosecutors also said Laura Owens edited photos to look pregnant.

“Parts of the body are obscured and taken away so you can make yourself look pregnant,” a prosecutor said.

Victims speak

Echard told the judge, “I’ve been fighting for the last three and a half years.”

In a statement read in court, victim Greg Gillespie said Laura Owens caused him to spend years defending his reputation, livelihood and name. He is seeking nearly $300,000 in restitution, according to the statement.

Parents ask for mercy

Laura Owens’ mother, Jan Owens, said Laura lives in a casita on their property and is a vital caregiver. She said Ronn Owens, Laura Owens’ father, has several medical issues and relies on his daughter for daily care.

Jan Owens said over the past 10 years, it has been gut-wrenching to watch her daughter as the target of unspeakable emotional and physical abuse and cyber harassment.

“She has been pregnant. She has had verified medical proof of pregnancy. She has been abused. She has been suffocated and strangled by men she has been with,” Jan Owens said.

She asked for probation only for Laura Owens.

Ronn Owens, 81, a longtime Bay Area radio broadcaster, told the court, “I love my daughter more than I can put into words.”

He asked the court not to take Laura Owens away for whatever time he has left.

Laura Owens emotional over threats

Laura Owens became emotional talking about threats she said she and her family received. She said supporters of victims sent death threats, posted her family’s address online and told her to take her own life.

“We didn’t know what was gonna happen if this person was going to actually come to my family’s house and shoot my mom, and I felt so guilty about it,” Laura Owens said.

She also told the court, “I want the rest of my life, and not just my words today, to show how completely, terribly sorry I am for everybody I’ve harmed.”

The judge said in deciding the sentence he weighed “whether or not she’s this sophisticated con person or a very sad individual making some poor choices.”

“Obviously, I think it’s the latter,” the judge said.

The judge imposed 30 days of flat time plus 12 months of deferred jail starting Oct. 22, 2027. Laura Owens faces up to 12.5 years in prison if she violates probation.