Indiana man charged with stalking, harassing Taylor Swift after allegedly sending threatening messages and showing up at concert
An Indiana man has been charged with allegedly stalking
By Sara Smart, CNN
(CNN) — An Indiana man has been arrested and charged with stalking and harassing Taylor Swift for several months.
Mitchell Taebel, 36, was booked into the LaPorte County Jail on June 2 on charges of stalking, intimidation, invasion of privacy and harassment, according to LaPorte County Jail records.
Taebel has been accused of sending threatening messages from March to May of this year to Swift, her team and management.
The affidavit from LaPorte Superior Court does not name Swift, but has multiple references to the singer throughout the document. This includes mentioning Swift’s management team, 13 Management; the Eras Tour, which is her current tour; Joe Alwyn, one of her recent boyfriends; and a song off Swift’s latest album.
According to the affidavit, Taebel sent a voice message to Swift through Instagram on March 29 saying “he would happily wear a bomb if he cannot be with his soul mate.”
He later sent messages to those closely related to Swift, including her father and dancers, the affidavit says.
The affidavit says that on May 5, Taebel traveled from Long Beach, Indiana, to Swift’s home in Nashville and was escorted away from the property by security. He then went to Nissan Stadium, where Swift was performing that night.
Before the show, Taebel was placed on a security threat/concern list so he wouldn’t be able to purchase any ticket for the show, the affidavit says. However, he was able to purchase a ticket through a third-party company and entered the stadium. He was recognized by security and was escorted off the site by security and venue personnel, according to the affidavit.
A temporary restraining order, requested by 13 Management’s legal counsel, was granted on May 11 and served to Taebell on May 13.
But the affidavit said Taebel violated the restraining order and continued to send messages to Swift through the month until at least May 18.
A $15,000 bond was set on June 1 for the stalking charge. Online court records indicate his next court appearance will be July 27 at 8:30 a.m.
CNN has reached out to 13 Management, Swift’s team and Taebel for comment.
The-CNN-Wire
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