Federal police arrested a former Los Angeles World Airport Police officer, Evan Baltierra, for allegedly stalking and harassing a World of Warcraft Twitch streamer. Baltierra, who is 29, will appear in United States District Court Tuesday, according to the California Department of Justice.
Baltierra has allegedly been stalking and harassing a former Twitch streamer, who goes by the name Nali online, since 2020. Nali described the harassment in a TwitLonger post published in January, in which she said Baltierra had been threatening her, her boyfriend, and their families with violence, as well as spreading images wherein her face had been edited onto naked bodies. In a news release, the California Department of Justice noted Baltierra first met the streamer at 2019 BlizzCon, Blizzard Entertainment’s annual gaming convention, during a meet-and-greet with fans. He was previously a moderator of her Twitch stream but after their meeting at BlizzCon, Nali removed him, according to an affidavit written by Federal Bureau of Investigations special agent Steven Wrathall and reviewed by Polygon.
The affidavit states that Baltierra’s harassment escalated from there, before Nali, a Canada resident, filed a restraining order against Baltierra. (Nali said in her TwitLonger post that she raised funds for a lawyer on GoFundMe.) A civil agreement was signed wherein Baltierra said he would stop harassing the streamer.
He allegedly kept harassing Nali and others connected to her, including sharing personal information — like her full name and a P.O. box address — that he had learned during the hearing. He also allegedly sent escalating threats of violence to Nali, her friends, and family, and attempted to hire a private investigator to find her address. He also allegedly used his background as a former U.S. marine and ex-Los Angeles World Police officer as an intimidation tactic.
(According to the affidavit, Baltierra served with the Marines for “at least one combat deployment,” and worked “briefly” as a police officer, “but did not complete his probationary period and resigned.” Polygon has reached out to the U.S. Marines and Los Angeles World Airport Police press offices for confirmation.)
Blizzard reportedly banned Baltierra multiple times — including a permanent ban — from World of Warcraft and its Battle.net platform due to the harassment. Baltierra attempted to appeal the bans but was denied, according to the affidavit. Blizzard also reportedly hired an “extra security person” for Nali at events, she told police, and Baltierra’s photograph was distributed among security, with Baltierra described as someone who is a threat.
On March 22, the FBI searched Baltierra’s home and found “many” saved “photoshopped nudes” of the streamer, as well as evidence that he owned the email addresses from which a number of harassing messages had originated.
Baltierra faces a five-year maximum sentence in federal prison if convicted. He has been released on bond, with an arraignment scheduled for June 27.
Source: Polygon
