Washington: A 32-year-old Indian-origin man has been sentenced to 19 years in prison in the US for stalking a woman from New Delhi to Texas for nearly a decade.
Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis announced the sentence for Jitender Singh on Wednesday.
"The jury put an end to this victim's decade-long stalking nightmare," Willis said in a statement.
According to Willis, Jitender Singh first met the woman while they both attended college in Delhi.
Though merely classmates, he asked the woman to marry him in 2006.
Willis said the woman, whose identity wasn't released by authorities, refused the proposal, which sparked Singh's anger.
He then began following her and threatened her with violence until she graduated.
In 2007, the woman left India to study at a New York university. However, that didn't end Singh's obsession.
Authorities say he continued his harassment and assaulted woman's father in India. Singh was convicted for the crimes in India, but made an appeal and agreement with authorities to stay away from the woman.
Singh eventually travelled to New York, where he attempted to enrol at the same university as the woman. He was denied and ordered by the university to stay away from the campus.
When the woman moved to California for an internship, he tracked down her address and followed. When she moved back to New York, Singh followed.
An information technology company hired her, and she moved to Plano in 2011.
Between 2011 and 2014, Singh harassed the victim through phone calls and other electronic means, Willis alleged.
In 2014, Singh located her address in Plano by falsely creating a credit monitoring service account in her name.
While the victim was away, Singh travelled to Plano and broke into her home by convincing a locksmith to unlock her door.
Singh took her passport, social security card and other documents as well as her jewelry.
A neighbour called Plano police which located Singh in the parking lot of the victim's apartment and arrested him.
Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis announced the sentence for Jitender Singh on Wednesday.
"The jury put an end to this victim's decade-long stalking nightmare," Willis said in a statement.
Though merely classmates, he asked the woman to marry him in 2006.
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He then began following her and threatened her with violence until she graduated.
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Authorities say he continued his harassment and assaulted woman's father in India. Singh was convicted for the crimes in India, but made an appeal and agreement with authorities to stay away from the woman.
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When the woman moved to California for an internship, he tracked down her address and followed. When she moved back to New York, Singh followed.
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Between 2011 and 2014, Singh harassed the victim through phone calls and other electronic means, Willis alleged.
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While the victim was away, Singh travelled to Plano and broke into her home by convincing a locksmith to unlock her door.
Singh took her passport, social security card and other documents as well as her jewelry.
A neighbour called Plano police which located Singh in the parking lot of the victim's apartment and arrested him.
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