A woman from Georgia has been sentenced to 1 year 8 months in prison for impersonating a pregnant teenager online, and emotionally abusing and manipulating adoptive couples looking to adopt a baby. 

According to a press release by the Office of Public Affairs at the Department of Justice (DOJ), Gabryele Watson was convicted of cyberstalking, transmitting interstate threats to abduct or injure, and identity theft.

Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the DOJ’s Criminal Division said Watson “cruelly misled couples hoping to adopt a child,” adding that she emotionally manipulated them by threatening to end the pregnancy and mocking adoptive mothers over their inability to conceive.

According to court documents, Watson, 30, stalked a married couple from the Middle District of Tennessee online. The couple had been attempting to adopt a baby for the past eight years. Watson impersonated to be a pregnant teenager from Pennsylvania (referred to as minor victim 1 in the court documents) and learned information about her via her social media posts. The defendant then used her online content in her own scheme. 

Watson first contacted the couple via her adoption page on social media while impersonating the pregnant teenager. She then used text-spoofing services and other measures to conceal her true identity. 

According to the documents, Watson claimed she had an unplanned pregnancy and wanted to put the child up for adoption. She allegedly used personal details stolen from Minor Victim 1’s life and also collected similar information from the couple.

As time passed, Watson began to put forth various conditions on the couple. She demanded that they always be available to respond to her communications and that they buy maternity clothes and baby-related items. 

The Georgia woman also began threatening to call off the adoption and falsely claimed that the baby was suffering from various life-threatening health conditions. The defendant also threatened to injure or abort the baby and to die by s*icide while she was pregnant. She even threatened to kill the couple. 

Defendant Gabryele Watson from Georgia threatened to abort the unborn baby and kill the adoptive couples. (Image Credit: Anas Ahmed/ Pexels)
Defendant Gabryele Watson from Georgia threatened to abort the unborn baby and kill the adoptive couples. (Image Credit: Anas Ahmed/ Pexels)

Watson abused another married couple from the Middle District of Tennessee similarly. This time, she claimed the identity of a pregnant 18-year-old from Arkansas. The defendant told the couple that she was pregnant with high-risk twins. 

The defendant also spoke to the couple’s two young sons over speakerphone, encouraging them to anticipate the adoption. She later intensified the threats, allegedly saying she would kill the couple and their children. The Georgia woman ultimately pleaded guilty on July 25, 2025, on charges of cyberstalking, transmitting interstate threats, and illegally using another person’s identification. Aside from the 20-month-long prison sentence, Watson has also been ordered to three years of supervised release. 

“This defendant, for her own selfish and evil reasons, preyed on the hopes and dreams of a young couple who simply wanted to be parents,” U.S. Attorney Braden Boucek for the Middle District of Tennessee said. “This kind of fraud is devastating to those it affects, it cannot be tolerated, and today’s punishment shows that we will hold those who commit it accountable for their actions.”