A catfish used my photos to trick a lonely man... now he's ruining my life and law enforcement won't help, says TV weather star
A Colorado meteorologist has revealed how her life has been turned upside down by an obsessed viewer who fell victim to an online 'catfish.'
FOX 31 weekday morning meteorologist Kylie Bearse has been repeatedly stalked by a 69-year-old man for over three years.
The man, whose identity is being withheld for safety reasons, was arrested last month after he followed Bearse home from work, once again violating the restraining orders she has against him.
She received legal protection from the man in 2023 after months of terrifying abuse, which included unwanted messages, visits and direct contact with her loved ones.
The meteorologist, like many local news stars, has an active social media presence and is expected to engage with viewers online and out in the community as part of her job.
Bearse, 35, first met her stalker at a charity event that she had publicized to fans. The pair shared what she described as a 'relatively normal interaction'. But within a year his behavior had escalated from friendly to 'obsessive.'
'He eventually came and found me at an event I was doing in August 2023 and that's when I learned he thought we had been married and in a relationship,' she told the Daily Mail.
He claimed they had been messaging for the past year, which led Bearse to believe he had been scammed by a 'catfish' - an online faker posing as someone else.
FOX 31 weekday morning meteorologist Kylie Bearse has been repeatedly stalked by a 69-year-old man for over three years. She believes her alleged stalker was first catfished by someone impersonating her online
The meteorologist, like many local news stars, has an active social media presence and is expected to engage with viewers online and in out in the community as part of her job
'I believe someone was scamming him and pretending to be me,' she said.
Bearse said she explained to him that she was not the person he had been communicating with and that he had likely fallen victim to a scam.
'I said "I think you should call the police and I think you should report this." He told me that he was going to continue talking to that person.
'I thought I got through to him and then it became very clear - he was very upset. I felt awful. But the obsessive behavior didn't stop.'
He managed to acquire Bearse's actual cell phone number and began to text her on that, she explained. 'He continued even after being told to stop.
'I told him to stop. I told him not to contact me again and then it continued on social media, on my work email - he would watch in the morning and email me - and on my phone.'
Bearse would try to block him on social media, but claimed that when she did, he would just create new accounts.
He reached out to her family, friends and anyone that was tagged in her posts in an attempt to 'have a relationship with them in order to get closer to me', she said.
Bearse admitted that there is a certain amount of 'scrutiny' that she expects as a public figure, but says that in the last decade she has seen a rise in fake accounts
He repeatedly sent her messages in which he referred to her as his 'beautiful wife' and when she was travelling would comment things like 'can't wait to go there with you' on her posts, Bearse told People Magazine.
He once allegedly contacted her sister-in-law about purchasing a painting she had created and even told one of Bearse's friends that he looked forward to taking her on a trip to Thailand some day.
Bearse filed a temporary restraining order against him in September 2023, which she claims he violated more than 50 times.
She was granted a permanent restraining order in January last year, after six months of alleged stalking.
The order, which was reviewed by the Daily Mail, barred the man from contacting Bearse or coming within 100 yards of her. He also cannot make any posts to or about her on social media.
The meteorologist admitted that there is a certain amount of 'scrutiny' that she expects as a public figure, but that dealing with catfishing accounts is a relatively new battle.
'I have [seen] probably 15 fake TikToks and all these people comment and try and get people and try and scam them in that way,' she said.
'I'm on the news for six hours every single morning so you do expect some [scrutiny] and it's just kind of part of the job. But I'd say within the last five to 10 years the scamming, kind of fake accounts, have just picked up.'
Bearse, who is just one of many news figures combatting fake accounts, said the situation can be stressful.
'It's very anxiety inducing thinking about that and wondering if he's not the only person out there who thought we were in a relationship.'
Bearse did not hear from her stalker for 18 months, but said the nightmare began again last month after he followed her home from work.
Bearse bravely shared her story on social media earlier this week because she knows she is not the only person who has been failed by the system
Bearse's stalker, whose identity is being withheld for safety reasons, was arrested last month after he followed her home from work - once again violating the restraining orders she has against him
She managed to safely get inside her home, but the alleged stalker went to her front door and rang the doorbell. She called 911, grabbed her dog and fled out the backyard.
The man was still sitting in his truck outside her residence one hour later when police arrived and arrested him.
He was jailed on a charge of felony stalking, but the charge was later dropped to a misdemeanor offence for violating a protection order.
He was released from jail on a $1,500 personal recognizance bond just a few days after his arrest, court records showed.
The meteorologist, who no longer felt safe in her home, was forced to find new housing after his release.
Denver prosecutors could have charged him with a felony but dropped the charges down to a misdemeanor on a 'judgement call,' she said.
Colorado law defines felony stalking as making a credible threat to someone by repeatedly following, approaching, contacting or placing them under surveillance.
The prosecutor allegedly claimed the recent incident did not count as felony stalking because it had been more than 18 months since the man last contacted her, she said.
The man (not pictured) was jailed on a charge of felony stalking, but the charge was later dropped to a misdemeanor offence for violating a protection order (stock photo)
'The Denver DA is not following the law. There is no timeline within the statute. I've had multiple lawyers look at it. I've had multiple DAs across Colorado say they are not enforcing it to their ability and that's what's incredibly frustrating,' she told the Mail.
'It's clearly stated in the law that he has reached the limit for felony stalking and they decided to go with a misdemeanor.'
Bearse bravely shared her story on social media earlier this week because she knows she is not the only person who has been failed by the system.
'My overall hope it's just for other women to not have to go through this because it's awful. It's gut-wrenching. The first week or two after I wouldn't sleep. I wouldn't realize I've gone 24 hours without eating,' she said.
'Once you lose your sense of safety your whole world changes.'
