If Amanda Riley's husband Cory was in on the fake cancer scam and where he is now: 'He was the manipulative mastermind'
"He groomed Amanda"
Scamanda examines the unsettling crimes of Amanda Riley, who faked having cancer in a bid to gain sympathy – and crucially cash donations – from her friends and family, but was her husband Cory complicit?
The four-part documentary lands on BBC Two this week (Tuesday, June 16), after previously airing on Disney+. Its first UK free-to-air release will introduce the shocking story to a whole new audience. And, just like The Mother of all Cons, the documentary will leave a sour taste in your mouth.
“Cancer con artist” Amanda Riley was a wife, mother, and blogger who “captivated thousands with her tragic cancer journey”. However, an anonymous tip eventually revealed it was all a “massive, years-long lie”.
After telling her friends and family that she’d received a “devastating cancer diagnosis”, her community and church rallied around her. She inspired thousands more with a blog, “bravely chronicling her journey”. During this time, she and her husband Cory even had two sons, whom she called “miracle babies”.
But Amanda Riley was lying, and spent nearly a decade fleecing people for money. And while she remains in jail, many more believe her husband Cory should be behind bars, too.
Was Amanda Riley’s husband Cory in on the scam?
Liar Amanda Riley, a teacher from California, was eventually found out. Police raided her home in 2016, and investigative producer Nancy Moscatiello dug up he horrifying truth about her health – they was nothing wrong with her.
While lying about a medical condition is not a crime in itself, getting money through fraudulent means is. In total, the community raised more than $100,000 towards Amanda’s so-called treatment.
Amanda Riley committed wire fraud by faking a Stage 3 Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis for nearly a decade. She swindled money from more than 300 donors, using blogs and social media pages to document her fraudulent “cancer journey”. including fake chemotherapy treatments and hospital stays.
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In June 2015, investigative journalist Nancy Moscatiello received an anonymous tip that Riley was faking her illness. In 2021, Amanda’s elaborate deception was eventually exposed via an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) investigation. She subsequently pleaded guilty to wire fraud, and received a five-year prison sentence.
But many Scamanda viewers are convinced her husband Cory Riley knew about the fraud. He remained by her side while she faked cancer to solicit donations, and he helped spend the money. However, he has never faced any charges related to the fundraising scheme.
The evidence against Amanda Riley’s husband Cory
Whether Cory was complicit in the fake cancer scam remains a major point of discussion in the case. Many people believe that he must have known about his wife’s diagnosis, or lack of. There’s also the fact that Amanda suddenly had lots of money. And a lot of the money Amanda raised was spent on Corey’s divorce to his former wife Aleeta, as well as child support for his daughter Jessa. He also embarked on a lengthy custody battle – using Amanda’s cancer as an excuse for leniency.
Cory argued that Amanda’s ‘illness’ was a medical hardship in an attempt to lower Cory’s child support payments to his ex-wife for their daughter, Jessa Gonzalez.
Amanda herself seemed to partly blame her husband during a lengthy phone call from federal prison. Podcast host Charlie Webster told US channel News Nation: “Amanda told me that she and Corey were divorcing. She said that a lot of the money she raised through saying she had cancer actually was spent on Corey’s divorce to Aleeta, and child custody and child support for Jessa. Amanda got really upset at one point in the conversation, about her children. It seemed very genuine. She was really crying, very, very upset – sobbing.”
Charlie added: “She said she was sorry and does want to take accountability. She looked well. That was the one thing that surprised me. She’s still saying that she’s got health problems. I honestly don’t know what I think about that. I don’t know if it’s true or not.”
‘Cory knew Amanda wasn’t sick’
Appearing on Scamanda, Cory’s daughter Jessa claimed that she knew Amanda was lying about her condition. She said: “He was very — I want to say ‘not himself’ – but I think I don’t really know who he is as a person. He kind of just looked numb all the time. He was always going to the gym.”
She added of Cory and Amanda: “They would take us to the hospital, almost to kind of prove there was something wrong with her.”
On the podcast, Detective Jose Martinez – who oversaw the case – said he believed that Cory knew Amanda wasn’t sick. However, there was no way to prove it. He said: “I felt [Cory] knew what was going on.”
Also worth saying here, that Cory supported his wife throughout the trial.
Was Amanda groomed?
Some of those who have followed the case closely have issue with the fact that Amanda met Cory Riley and his then-wife Aletta Bernal when she was just 17-years-old. They hired cheerleader Amanda to teach dance to Aletta’s daughter Jaymie, who was being (genuinely) treated for cancer and was immunocompromised.
Cory, who was 29 years old at the time, also shared a 6-month-old daughter named Jessa with Aletta. Cory and Aletta subsequently divorced, and he later married Amanda – despite a 12-year age difference. This, some say, is evidence of grooming. And arguably makes Amanda a victim.
Where is Amanda Riley’s husband Cory now?
As of 2024, Cory has been living in Austin, Texas with his two sons Connor and Carter with Amanda Riley. He filed for divorce while she was in prison, more than a decade after their 2011 wedding. Amanda and Cory had moved to Texas together before she pled guilty in October 2021. They made the move from California after she lost her job as a principal at Pacific Point Christian School.
He has largely retreated from the public eye and has never spoken publicly or given interviews about the scandal.
In the Scamanda documentary, Corey’s daughter Jessa revealed she hadn’t seen her father for a long time. She admitted she was “really hurt” but also “kind of relieved” when the case ended. She says that neither has offered a personal apology, nor even admitted to the falsity of Amanda’s illness.
‘Cory is the manipulative mastermind behind Amanda’s fake cancer story’
Unsurprisingly, Amanda Riley’s fake cancer scam shocked America – and multiple fans have their own theories about Cory’s possible guilt.
Writing on Reddit, one said: “Corey is the manipulative mastermind behind Amanda’s fake cancer story. The evidence indicates a possibility that it was Cory, not Amanda, who orchestrated the entire scheme.”
Another agreed, saying: “I do agree that he groomed her, manipulated her, and was an equal part or even directing the early stages building the fraud.”
A third said: “I do think Corey is extremely manipulative and likely was heavily involved and perhaps pressuring Amanda to keep up her story.”
“After listening to the podcast, I was so angry that Corey didn’t get investigated and/or indicted for this scam. He knew. The mom knew. Corey definitely groomed her and made her into the deceptive liar to please him.”
Others disagreed, saying: “I think Amanda was the mastermind and Corey enabled her.”
Another added: “Why do so many people want to exculpate Amanda for everything she did? Corey couldn’t mastermind anything. Everything points to him being a complete dope, incurious about everything going on around him, blissfully oblivious. Not a single person interviewed who witnessed any of this story posits that he was the one who pulled the strings. He may suck for a variety of reasons but, no, he is no criminal mastermind.”
Read more: New documentaries and true crime on TV and streaming in June 2026
