Apparently 'Survivor' Season 48 Castaway Shauhin Davari Dated Sherri Papini When He Was a Kid

The name Sherri Papini is synonymous with the words manipulative, liar, delusional, and grifter. Her story is long and winding, like the road she was jogging on the day the mother of two was allegedly kidnapped. She lived in Redding, Calif. with her husband and children, in what many would describe as the perfect life. Unfortunately, Papini, who faked her own abduction in 2016, maintains she was actually snatched by her ex-boyfriend James Reyes.

In September 2022, Papini was sentenced to 18 months in prison followed by 36 months of supervised release for "materially false statements to FBI agents about the circumstances of her own hoax kidnapping and committing mail fraud based on her being a kidnapping victim," per the Department of Justice. This story captivated America and one man in particular. Shauhin Davari, from Season 48 of Survivor, came forward with a wild claim about Papini. Here's what we know.

In a TikTok shared by the Allegedly True Crime account, from a 2022 episode of Inside Edition, Davari says he and Papini met when she was a youth counselor. He was 15 years old and Papini was 20. "In retrospect, sure, tons of red flags," he said. "But she was a counselor that was going out with a 15 year old kid." That was more than two decades ago, but Davari remembered a lot about Papini.

Davari called Papini a compulsive liar who would stop speaking to him for a few days, only to reconnect with some sort of "fantastical story." One of her bizarre fibs involved Papini claiming she was an extremely skilled surfer. As an avid surfer himself, Davari was skeptical of this. "There was always an excuse as to why she couldn't go surf." For example, Papini just had to have her surfboard, but it was at her house. She had no pictures of it or of herself actually surfing.

The lies didn't stop there. Davari was told by Papini that she had some sort of mysterious heart condition. Eventually, he and others figured out this wasn't true. When asked about Papini being kidnapped, Davari said he didn't believe it at the time. "There's just no way," he said. "There's just no chance that she got kidnapped."

In June 2025, the Redding Record Searchlight reported that Papini is being evicted from the home she shared with her ex-boyfriend, Shawn Hibdon. Exactly one year prior, the Daily Mail discovered that Papini was living with Hibdon, who is a widower, in a four-bedroom home in Orland, Calif. that he was paying for. Their relationship began before Papini went to prison.

Per court documents obtained by the Searchlight, Hibdon sent Papini a letter dated Jan. 5, 2025, saying she had 30 days to move out. Papini alleges that Hibdon has been harassing and threatening her. "The plaintiff (Hibdon) has made threats both implied and explicit ― that unless I purchase the home under specific, unfavorable terms, I will be evicted, publicly humiliated or face further harm to my personal financial well-being" she said.

Neither party responded to requests for comment.