Since early June, UConn’s star guard Paige Bueckers has been the victim of stalking and harassment from an Oregon man, according to charges out of Connecticut Superior Court in Rockville.
Although the man, identified as Robert Cole Parmalee, is charged with making threats and attempting to get near Bueckers and her teammates in the past, it wasn’t until Friday that he faced charges.
The 40-year-old from Grants Pass, Oregon, has been charged with breach of peace, electronic stalking, and harassment, which include dozens of videos and posts on social media supposedly making disturbing and threatening comments toward Bueckers and her UConn teammates.
Stalking and harassment timeline
ESPN reports that Parmalee first began seeking contact with Bueckers in February. An affidavit on an arrest warrant application for Parmalee cites that he would send videos to Bueckers via Instagram. Bueckers says she never responded.
UConn Police first learned of Parmalee in June, when they received emails from Parmalee claiming to be a member of the royal family who wanted to marry a member of the UConn women’s basketball team.
According to reports, the emails also include pictures of figures like Queen Elizabeth II and Lucille Ball, as well as images of other female basketball players. According to UConn Police officials, Parmalee started with emails described as “ramblings,” but the threats escalated to social media with Parmalee going as far as to create fake wedding invitations.
Parmalee would post threatening messages on his socials, with one post on his TikTok reading “And if I cannot live with a woman of my choosing, [Bueckers], then I will choose to die, and I will choose to take all of you that [op]pose me, oppose us, to hell, and return, king…”
On August 27, Parmalee was arrested by Connecticut State Police on charges unrelated to Bueckers after he had flown across the country to Hartford, Connecticut. When asked by state police what he was doing in Connecticut, Parmalee informed them he was going to see Bueckers. He claimed she was his “friend.”
Comments extend beyond UConn
Although Bueckers was the victim of Parmalee’s more heinous harassment, UConn spokesperson Stephanie Reitz stated that Parmalee’s initial emails from June also referenced several other female players from around the country. Reitz added, “The UConn employees, along with dozens of people throughout the U.S. unrelated to UConn, continued to receive emails in coming weeks that were again provided to police and reviewed for potentially actionable criminal conduct.”
What is Parmalee being charged with?
Parmalee is being charged with breach of peace, electronic stalking, and harassment. He is currently being held on $100,000 bond. Parmalee appeared in Rockville Superior Court Monday, and his next court date is set for October 22.
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