Mother of Robin Niceta calls cancer plot "Diabolical... All a scam"
The mother of Robin Niceta is now at odds with her daughter, the former Arapahoe County human services worker, calling her daughter "diabolical" and claiming her daughter scammed her family and the public by claiming to have cancer.
"We find out it's all fake," said Janice Dudley, "I think she deceived us more than anyone else."
Dudley made the statements during a recent phone interview with CBS News Colorado.
A grand jury indicted Robin Niceta last month on 10 new charges related to her allegedly falsifying medical records that suggested she was suffering from brain cancer. The grand jury also indicted her mother for allegedly participating in the cancer scenario. Dudley turned herself into authorities and is currently free on bond.
But Dudley maintains she was not involved in assisting her daughter in the plot, says she is innocent of the charges, and claims she and her family were duped by her daughter.
"I'm just, like, dumbfounded," said Dudley. "I was really scammed by this person. This is my kid. Who would do something like that?" she said. "I am so stupid. You want to believe your kids. "
She said her daughter has changed her phone number and the two have not spoken in weeks.
Dudley also shared a voicemail she said she received several months ago from her daughter's purported cancer doctor in New Mexico, named "Dr. Marquez." Prosecutors now say there is no evidence the doctor existed. Dudley said she now believes the voice message left for her was actually left by her daughter. She says she discovered a voice-altering device in her daughter's possessions, which she believes was used to alter her daughter's voice.
"There is no Marquez," said Dudley. "All of us" feel scammed, said Dudley. "We were so worried she was dying- she wasn't even sick."
Niceta did not respond Tuesday to an email from CBS News Colorado.
Niceta was charged in 2022 with allegedly calling into the Arapahoe County Department of Human Services and leaving an anonymous tip, accusing Aurora City Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky of child abuse. Investigators cleared Jurinsky of any wrongdoing and traced the call to Niceta. She was charged with two criminal counts in that case and has yet to stand trial. Prosecutors allege that as that case was working its way through the court system, Niceta supplied medical records and MRI images to the court suggesting she was suffering from cancerous brain tumors and could not appear in court. Investigators later concluded the records and images were falsified, leading to last month's grand jury indictments against Niceta and her mother.
Asked about her daughter's behavior, Dudley said she was "such an actress. She went crazy trying to make up the stories." Dudley said she had paid in excess of $20,000 for her daughter's legal bills.
"It's got to be a mental illness," said the mother. "She really needs help."
