Independence woman pleads guilty to cyberstalking

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — An Independence, Missouri, woman pleaded guilty to using the internet to "stalk and terrorize" a victim in Kansas.

According to court documents, Julianne Grace Willis, 26, pleaded guilty to one count of cyberstalking.

The United States Attorney's Office District of Kansas says a victim in Ulysses, Kansas, noticed a minor relative had received messages in 2022 on a Roblox account from someone purporting to be a 24-year-old man.

The messages were demeaning, so the victim blocked the account, the attorney's office said.

Later, the FBI traced the phone number and IP address to Willis.

After she was blocked, Willis began harassing the victim through calls, texts and social media messages, threatening to rape and kill the victim and their family, the attorney's office said.

The attorney's office said Willis also created a fake dating profile, which caused men to show up at the victim's home expecting romantic encounters; made derogatory statements to the victim's employer, which caused the victim to change jobs; and sent messages accusing infidelity to the victim's family.

"The victim endured a sustained and deliberate campaign of harassment by the defendant, whose repeated actions caused significant disruption to the victim's daily life and the well-being of their family. This conduct had a profound and lasting impact on the victim's sense of security and quality of life," Chris Ormerod, FBI Kansas City Special Agent in Charge, said in a news release.

Willis is scheduled to be sentenced in November.

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