Stalker Vows To Continue Stalking Victim After Sentence Is Over

An unrepentant stalker vows to continue stalking his victim after his sentence is over. The female reporter at a CBS affiliate in Philadelphia still hasn’t gotten the reassurance she needs to feel completely safe. Christopher Nilan, 32, faces a 15-year term, partially spent in jail and partly on house arrest and then probation. He wasn’t easily dissuaded by his sentence, however, vowing to resume his obsessive behavior at the first opportunity.

“I’m not going to give it up. I want to be with her. I’m the only person who can protect her.”

Nilan’s obsession with the reporter began back in November, and has continued ever since. He’s repeatedly attempted to contact her, continuing to call the station, even trying to go through one of her colleagues to gain access to her. One of the colleagues he contacted told him that the station discourages reporters from having relationships with viewers. Unrepentant, the stalker vows to continue.

Christopher Nilan vows to keep hounding female TV reporter when his probation ends https://t.co/7jI62Xr7na

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According to an arrest affidavit, the Delco Times reports, Nilan had approached a male reporter in November and talked about wanting to write letters to another reporter and to have the victim call him. “Witness number one” advised Nilan that he could find her contact information on CBS3 and the conversation ended. The same witness stated that at a later date he received a letter from Chris Nilan looking for additional information and included his own phone number at the end of the letter. Another witness says he was working the news assignment desk and received two phone calls from Nilan in January asking to speak to the victim. Nilan said he wrote to the victim three separate times and did not receive a response. A third witness called Nilan after being told about the situation and advised him employees are not encouraged to have relationships with viewers.

He was persistant, though, and kept asking to speak with the object of his obsession and wanted to meet her. He said he was a former firefighter and a “good guy.” The unrepentant stalker said he wanted to protect the reporter from bad guys when she wasn’t working. He also expressed a desire to date her, saying he wanted to take her for a drink and dinner at an Italian restaurant. He said he lives in an apartment nearby and wanted to take the victim there as well. He said he had some very personal things to share with the woman and couldn’t share that with the third witness to whom he was speaking. Police superintendent Michael Chitwood has been taking the case very seriously, calling Nilan a true predator.

“I think he’s a very, very dangerous individual. He’s a true predator.”

Nilan mentioned another stalking case involving a CBS anchor, Erika von Tiehl, in 2011. He claimed he is not the same kind of guy charged with stalking von Tiehl; she was harassed by a man she had dated for a couple of months. Nilan said he would be very upset if anything happened to the victim and that he has a temper.

In a letter to his victim, Nilan described himself as six-foot, one-inch tall, and weighing 220 pounds. The stalker also wrote that he’d been waiting three weeks for her to respond, and included his name, address and cell phone number. When police asked the victim how she felt about the letters and phone calls, she said they made her uncomfortable and that she was afraid of Nilan.

According to a report by Fox News, Chitwood called him a “textbook predator,” and went on to explain that when the behavior of this type of person escalates, they become a danger to their victim. Christopher Nilan saw the woman on TV and became obsessed. After his repeated attempts to reach her were unsuccessful, he started leaving nasty phone messages to the station.

Delaware County Judge Gregory Mallon created a sentence for Nilan, known as intermediate punishment, to keep close tabs on him for nearly two years. After that time, the stalker will spend 13 more years on probation. Christopher Nilan has been in jail since his arrest and will now tentatively be paroled June 25 as part of his sentence. He’ll then spend three months at his home on house arrest with an electronic ankle bracelet and tracked by GPS for the remainder of his punishment. He must also submit to outpatient mental health.

Judge Mallon told the stalker he needs to give up his fixation with the woman, or else. He told him, “you make the choice,” then went on to tell him it’s a very simple thing, that he had to abide by what the judge said or go back to prison. CBS News said Nilan entered an open plea, admitting guilt without any assurances that his behavior would change. He remains unrepentant, and vows to continue his stalking behavior toward the reporter as soon as his sentence is over.

[Photo by AP Images]