A nurse who put her iPhone up for sale on Facebook Marketplace has described how the listing spiralled into a years-long stalking ordeal involving a stranger.
Registered nurse Melanie Smith said that after posting the advert online, she began receiving a barrage of communications from a man she didn’t know, including threatening emails and an overwhelming number of texts and messages across different platforms.
Alongside the messages, she said she started getting unwanted deliveries that were sexual in nature, such as lingerie, sex toys, condoms and flowers.
She told Inside Edition: “I got this bizarre message from this person I never met, it had some sexual comments on it.
“‘I’ve carefully chosen you to be a “victim”‘. A lot of sexual, violent things that he wanted to do to me.”
Melanie said she blocked him, but alleged he continued to reach her by contacting her from new numbers. She also claimed the packages kept coming, including what she says amounted to around 40 items of lingerie.
She reported the situation to police multiple times over several years, but says little changed until the man allegedly turned up at her parents’ home in Long Island at midnight.
The man was later arrested and charged with harassment and stalking, and spent 90 days in jail. However, Melanie said he was released after requesting a psychological examination.
Following that evaluation, she said he was found mentally unfit to proceed with the case.
Melanie also claims that after his release, the contact did not stop and that gifts have continued to be sent to her address.
“I don’t sleep well, I have nightmares that include him, I thought I heard the door creek in my bedroom… I’m like, is that him?”
The case has prompted a strong reaction online, with many people expressing horror at what she says she has experienced and urging authorities to take stronger action.
“Are they not going to do anything until he actually hurts me?” Melanie told Newsday.
“I don’t think I live a normal life anymore.
“They questioned me if I had an OnlyFans account, if I met him online, if I dated him, I wasn’t taken seriously at all.”
Inside Edition said police told them they are “taking the matter seriously” and are “looking at all options to hold the accused stalker accountable”. They also said the officer assigned to the case has been in regular contact with Melanie.