This might be very unusual for an author to share something very personal, but I consider this a way to protect myself. I never thought I'd have a stalker. It's hard to convey the level of fear that someone you've never met can put in you, especially when this person includes your son. As a parent you do everything possible to protect your child, and I felt helpless...and hopeless. This is a concise timeline of being harassed and stalked...

 

          This whole thing started with my son (Please note, NONE of this was his fault). H (nickname) is a very kind, soft-hearted, person. I remember once when he was in middle school, crying because one of his classmates stepped on and killed this beautiful multi-colored beetle, and H's tender heart broke for this insect. 

         When H came to me about 2 years ago, wanting to put his artwork out there in the world, I agreed. From the time he was very young, he always had a pencil in hand, drawing whenever and wherever. Art is his passion. Through the stories he creates and the visuals that go with them. He had started a fanfic comic based on the horror game, Little Nightmares. Excited, I sat with him while he initiated his Instagram page. So proud because he put himself out there for possible critique. 

            I was even happy when he made online friends among people who had similar interests in common. His social anxiety prevented him from making friends easily, but the anonymity helped him break out of that shell. I thought everything was great, but then, one particular friend started upsetting him. This “friend” wanted him to do things he didn’t want to do. Unbeknownst to me, this person started to emotionally manipulate my son. Luckily, we have a very tight bond, and he came to me to talk about this person named Blue.

            That was the first time I heard him.

            It seemed like Blue was depressed and threatened suicide. My son wanted to help Blue, and asked me to talk to him. I sent him a DM, and for about twenty minutes I tried to sort through all the information I was being told. Trying to determine if I needed to contact someone about his thoughts of self-harm. But…the more I conversed with Blue, the more I became convinced this person wasn’t a teenager.

            I suspected he was a grown man.

            H and I decided to stop communication with him, and blocked Blue. Little did we realize we’d just set in motion a literal nightmare.

            Blue started creating new personas on Instagram to follow my son, in the effort to stalk him. Then he did the same to me. Each time, we’d block him, and he would start all over again.

            Then…he began posting photoshopped screenshots of fake dialog between him and my son. Painting H as a horrible, mean, racist person. The fake screenshots shocked us, and it was then I realized just how toxic and determined this individual was.

            Do you know how scary it is to realize that your child is being stalked?

            And that you’re helpless to protect him?

            My husband and I went to the local FBI station to report everything Blue was doing. An agent called and I laid everything out, and was told there was nothing they could do until Blue appeared on my property.

            I posted on my social media what Blue was doing.

            Then suddenly, he seemed to have disappeared. We didn’t hear from him and I thought he got tired of hassling us.

                                                ****

            About a year and a half later, I get a new follower on Instagram. It was another incarnation of Blue. I blocked him. Another request, and another. I kept blocking him. Then one night, I get a call from a “Private Number”, and the message left was a man telling me how horrible H was. How he was a child predator. He doxed children. Molesting them. Stalked them. This person called me three times. Saying he was going to come here to rape me in my pussy, ass and mouth. Threatening to rape my son. The two minute voice mail was terrifying because he had my number, my address, and my SS#. He posted photos of the condo complex I live in. Blasting this on social media. All the old fake screenshots resurfaced. All the fear came back. H didn’t want to stay in our home because he was scared. He grabbed the baseball bat to keep by his bed, and my husband bought him pepper spray.

            This person has left messages to H's dad and even his grandparents in Louisiana. He tried to DM my friends. He's revealed he knows everything about us.  Whether or not Blue was the person who left me a message, or one of his believers, his actions have caused immense strife to our lives.

             H and I went to the local police and filed a report. It got assigned to a detective, so it was an ongoing investigation. I also updated my FBI report. Will Blue ever be caught? I hope so. I want to know who this guy is and warn people about him. Then...he disappeared once more. Will he return? 

             I have precautions in place now, but I never thought I'd have a stalker. 

            A parent’s job is to protect their child. I wasn’t able to do that two years ago, and it left something ugly inside me. I wish I had thought to protect our identities at the beginning. Now, we’re playing catch up.

            So, going back...why am I sharing this story? Because if you take away the power someone has over you, it nullifies them. I am working with law enforcement to unmask this person, and to bring to light that my family isn't the only one affected. 

            The other reason is to warn everyone that this can happen to them. Protect yourself. Lock down your credit. Buy a privacy protection. And stay safe.