HORSHAM MAN GUILTY OF STALKING INFLUENCER AND THREATENING KIDNAPPING
A man has been found guilty of stalking a social media influencer online.Rob Keating was convicted of two counts of stalking after police said he harassed a female travel influencer and traveled to Bali to try to locate her.
The 39-year-old, from Old Crawley Road in Horsham, was found guilty following a seven-day trial at Portsmouth Crown Court.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary described Keating's messages to the woman as 'constant and so concerning in nature that the woman blocked him'.
In a statement, police explained that Keating started contacting the woman, who works as an Instagram influencer, in June 2022 — despite the two never having met in person.
After being blocked on social media, Keating continued his harassment by contacting her via her personal email, sending screenshots of her posts and demonstrating that he was accessing her account from other secret accounts.
The woman reported receiving 'hundreds of emails' and 30 videos from Keating over six months.
Police stated that in December 2022, he sent her an email threatening to kidnap her and linked videos he made threatening to do so, including a photo of a body in a suitcase and videos of him threatening to kidnap and rape her.
Keating also sent her evidence of flight tickets and a visa to Bali, indicating intent to travel to kidnap her.
A friend of the woman saw Keating near her address, and she subsequently left the country.
Keating was arrested at Gatwick Airport in March 2023 and, while still under investigation more than a year later, he contacted the woman again with screenshots of flights to Bali captioned 'Round Two.' He has been remanded in custody after being found guilty by a jury and is due to appear at Portsmouth Crown Court for sentencing on 25 July.
