Seaford man pleads guilty to cyberstalking his ex

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A Seaford man pleaded guilty on Thursday to cyberstalking his ex-girlfriend while she was attending the State University of New York at Geneseo between October and December 2017 ¬– and mailing illegal drugs to her at college to make it look as if she was buying them.

Thomas Traficante, 23, pleaded guilty to one count of cyberstalking and one count of distribution of a controlled substance on March 22 in U.S. District Court in Rochester.

According to an affidavit submitted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Traficante was accused of harassing and stalking his ex-girlfriend on Oct. 31, after officials at SUNY Geneseo received an anonymous tip that Traficante’s ex-girlfriend was purchasing illegal drugs. When university staff saw a package delivered to her house on Nov. 2, the ex-girlfriend denied that she purchased it, and revealed that she recently broke up with Traficante.

In the two months that followed, according to federal agents, Traficante harassed the victim, her family and sorority, as well as posted her contact information on a prostitution website. More suspicious packages were also sent to the university in the victim’s name, and a BB gun bullet broke the victim’s vehicle parked on Long Island.

Traficante was arrested on Dec. 21, and mandated to take a psychiatric exam on Jan. 31.

Traficante waived his indictment and pleaded guilty to cyberstalking, which carries a maximum 5-year imprisonment sentence and a $250,000 fine, and to distribution of a controlled substance, which carries a maximum 20-year imprisonment sentence and a $1,000,000 fine.