Alec Baldwin's Genevieve Sabourin & Other Celebrity Stalkers
Alec Baldwin's stalker, Genevieve Sabourin, was sentenced to six months in jail yesterday (14th November).
Sabourin claims to have had a sexual encounter with Baldwin in 2010, something Baldwin denies. Two years later, she proceeded to ring and email Baldwin. She was finally arrested in April 2012 when she turned up at Baldwin's Manhattan apartment. Baldwin's then-fiancé, now wife, Hilaria asked their doorman to contact the police.
Sabourin, a 41-year-old Canadian actress, maintained she was "innocent" even after Judge Robert Mandelbaum ruled against her. She also verbally abused Baldwin when he took to the stand on Tuesday (12th November), as a result of repeatedly interrupting his testimony she was sentenced to one month jail time. The judge then ruled she should spend a further six months in prison.
Baldwin is not the only celebrity to have been plagued by an overly ardent fan. A worryingly large number of fans became obsessed with celebrities and take their infatuation to terrifying and dangerous levels.
So here are five other celebrities and their stalkers...
Jennifer Lopez
In August of this year, John M. Dubis moved into the singer's mansion in the Hamptons. He lived in the pool house where he resided for a number of days before finally being discovered by a member of Lopez's staff.
Dubis managed to wander around the grounds freely and even posted photographs of the mansion and grounds on his Facebook wall. For six days, Dubis' presence went unnoticed by Lopez's security staff, which is largely surprising considering the mansion is 8500 sq. feet and sits on three acres of land.
Dubis, when police were called, was imprisoned and his bail set at $100 000.
A 46-year-old man, Thomas Brodnicki, became obsessed with then 19-year-old Selena Gomez. In 2011, he travelled to Los Angeles, from his native Chicago, in order to meet Gomez. He visited her on a number of occasions.
However, Brodnicki's behaviour was more sinister and even stranger than deciding to travel half way across the country to see a teenager. He, according to TMZ, told his psychiatrist he wanted to kill Gomez.
Mel Gibon's stalker, Zack Sinclair, was sentenced to three years in prison after violating a restraining order against him. The 34-year-old man was a homeless man from Idaho who became obsessed with Gibson in 2004. Sinclair was arrested when he was discovered close to Gibson's Malibu home.
According to reports in People, it seems Sinclair became interested in Gibson owing to his outspoken religious views. On the subject Gibson said "I realised we were probably dealing with someone fairly deluded." He continued by mentioning the affect having a stalker had on his family: "My wife was upset and worried. She didn't want to find him in the living room drinking tea."
Gossip Girl actress and wife of Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, was forced to obtain a restraining order against a fan in 2012. According to TMZ, Sergei Mifle contacted Lively's mother claiming her daughter was troubled and that he needed to help her. The man also felt he had a connection with Lively which could help him "heal."
Lively obtained a restraining order from a New York judge as she felt Mifle was a threat to her, and her mother's, personal safety.
David Letterman
A relatively early example of celebrity stalking was that of Margaret Mary Ray's obsession with David Letterman. Throughout the late 90s, Ray was jailed on a number of occasions for stalking the chat show host. In one incident, according to the NY Times, she stole Letterman's Porsche and drove it around New York. She continued to contact him and broke into his Connecticut house.
Ray was evidently deeply troubled and committed suicide in 1998.