FLORIDA – A California man has been arrested for allegedly stalking Florida residents, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida (USAO) has announced.
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United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced the arrest and filing of a criminal complaint charging Christopher Au-Young, 35, of California, with interstate stalking and cyberstalking. If convicted on all counts, Au-Young faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.
According to the complaint, since August 2022, Au-Young has engaged in a campaign of online and telephonic harassment and threats against multiple victims who reside in the Middle District of Florida and elsewhere. Au-Young reportedly engaged in a course of conduct with the intent to harass or intimidate the victims.
Specifically, Au-Young is alleged to have cyberstalked, harassed, and threatened the victims by posting threatening and harassing videos on Facebook, YouTube, Vimeo, and Reddit. Au-Young reportedly also made repeated phone calls to and sent threatening voicemails and text messages to the victims. In addition, Au-Young drove his car from California to Illinois to intimidate and harass one of the victims, the USAO said.
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According to the complaint, Au-Young posted 50 videos about one victim alone.
“The videos were so offensive and threatening that many people complained and Au-Young eventually removed most of them,” the complaint said.
A complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Tampa Police Department, the Anaheim (California) Police Department, and Carbondale (Illinois) Police Department. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa M. Thelwell.
