A former Georgia State Patrol employee entered a plea of guilty, to falsely reporting a crime during a court appearance last week.

Forty-one-year-old Cheryl Lisa Stewart admitted that she made the story up when she said an armed man came into the Rome GSP post and threatened her.  The incident happened in May of last year and after Stewart’s claim a massive manhunt by law enforcement searched businesses and locations in the Armuchee area.  Video from a business near the state patrol post showed that only one person had been in the post that morning – and that person was from the district attorney’s office. 

When Stewart was shown the video, she stopped cooperating with the investigation.

Stewart was sentenced to 24 months probation, a fine, and 80 hours of community service.

During the sentencing process, Stewart’s attorney said that she has had some mental health issues in the past.

(Rome News-Tribune/www.northwestgeorgianews.com)