A Massachusetts man has been arrested by federal authorities for allegedly stalking a former prominent member of the Republican Party, reportedly contacting the victim via phone over 40 times in just a two-month span, U.S. Attorney Leah Foley’s office says.
Foley’s office says John Anthony Proia III, 41, of Waltham, was arrested and indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston Thursday
The victim, prosecutors say, is a former political advisor and prominent figure in the Republican Party who is married to a high-level federal official and lives in the vicinity of Washington, D.C. He even allegedly contacted the unnamed victim’s parents.
“It is alleged that the victim at times received multiple communications a day, including calls late at night. The calls that were answered by the victim, as well as voicemails, were allegedly made by what appeared to be a male caller employing a menacing tone and often using expletives,” a press release from Foley’s office explained.
“The phone numbers used to make these communications were obtained through applications that provide free phone numbers for calling and messaging via Voice Over Internet Protocol (“VoIP”),” it said.
Charging documents claim these applications allowed Proia to obfuscate his identity and easily generate new phone numbers.
According to the indictment, Proia used multiple phone numbers to contact the victim at least 40 times between Aug. 3, 2026 and Sept. 23, 2026.
He also allegedly sent text messages to phones numbers associated with the victim’s parents:
“Good morning [first name of victim’s mother]. Does it disturb you that such evil as [Federal Official] is married to the creature that slithered from your C***?” the message said with along with a photo of the victim.
“My god, how can you be proud of this filth?”he continued, before going on to message the victim’s father. “Hey [first name of victim’s father], how goes it? Hope your daughter marrying a Jewish Nazi/white supremacist is working out for you and [first name of victim’s mother]. Did you raise her to be trash or did that just happen naturally?”
Proia was arrested Thursday afternoon and was arraigned in federal district court in Boston.
As alleged in the Indictment, the defendant repeatedly and relentlessly targeted the victim, her husband and her family with deeply disturbing communications that profoundly disrupted their lives,” Foley said.
“Cyberstalking can inflict real fear and harm, and we take these allegations extremely seriously. Those who use technology to harass, intimidate or torment others should understand that attempts to anonymize their criminal conduct will not shield them from prosecution. We will find you, and we will hold you accountable,” she said.
The name of the victim is being withheld.
