US4 min(s) read
Published 12:56 21 May 2026 GMT
A mother and son who made headlines this week after it was revealed that their incestuous relationship led them both into drugs and crime have spoken out about why they fell in love ten years ago.
Despite a court order ruling that they must stay apart, a mother and son who pleaded guilty to incest swore that even legal barriers would not stop them from being together.
After a concerned neighbor reported the incestuous couple to the police in 2016, Monica Mares, 37, and Caleb Peterson, 20, were ordered to stay apart for 18 months as part of their three-year probation deal.
The mother and son were separated when Mares gave her son up for adoption after giving birth to him when she was just 16 years old. But when Peterson turned 18, the pair got in contact over Facebook and quickly moved in together.
Mares told the Mail Online, “The first time I met my son in person, I was so happy and excited I gave him a big hug.
"It felt like I met somebody new in my life and I fell in love with him.”
The now mother-of-nine explained that she had “butterflies” on her way to pick up her son from his adoptive parents’ house last year.
Peterson claimed he began developing feelings for his biological mother after they moved in together and she began looking after him.
He said, “I never got anything my entire life, and she went out of her way to make me happy, and after about a week or so, I started having feelings for her, and I guess I fell in love.
“I never thought I was crazy for having these feelings because I didn't see her as my mom; it was more like going to a club and meeting a random person. It didn't feel wrong; it felt normal.
“She's adult I'm adult I can make my own decisions. I never thought it would blow up into something like this.”
The bizarre couple said that despite the public reaction to their relationship, they were head-over-heels in love and chose to speak out about their situation to raise awareness and attempt to normalize Genetic Sexual Attraction (GSA).
GSA is defined as a physical attraction between close relatives – siblings, parents, and children or cousins who first met as adults.
However, after the couple opened up publicly about their relationship, they were insulted, attacked, and ostracized by their neighbours. Peterson’s adoptive father, who looked after him from infancy, has even cut off contact.
Mother Mares was also forbidden from seeing her eight other children, but made it clear that she was prepared to sacrifice her relationships with her other children in order to be with her eldest son romantically.
Attempting to justify her choice, Mares said, “It is every bit worth it. If they lock me up for love, then they lock me up. There is no way anybody could pull us apart, and I really do love him.
“He is the love of my life, and I don't want to lose him. My kids love him, my whole family does. Nothing can come between us, not courts, or jail, nothing. I have to be with him.”
