SPRINGFIELD | The wife of a founder of the Ozarks Minutemen has
pleaded guilty to lying about being raped and shot by three Hispanic
men.
Angela D. Wilburn, 44, appeared in Greene County Associate Circuit
Court on Tuesday and pleaded guilty to making a false report, a class
B misdemeanor. Wilburn is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 3. She could
face up to six months in prison and a $500 fine.
Wilburn is the wife of Brian Wilburn, who helped form the Ozarks
Minutemen. She was charged with the crime in December, after calling
911 reporting someone had shot her.
Angela Wilburn told investigators that three Hispanic men broke into
her mobile home and that one of the men sexually assaulted her in the
hallway, then shot her in the knee with a handgun.
She soon retracted her story and said she heard a noise, and grabbed
her husband’s gun. She told police the gun went off as she reached for
a flashlight.
By the time Angela Wilburn made the admission, Greene County deputies
had already spent more than 100 man-hours investigating the fictitious
attack.
The sheriff’s department said in December it would seek restitution
from Angela Wilburn for the wasted time. Such repayment could be part
of her sentence, said Greene County Chief Deputy Jim Arnott.
