Alleged stalker arrested after traveling here from Michigan

A Michigan man suspected of stalking found the Thousand Oaks Police Department standing between him and a female resident he allegedly drove across country to see.

George Costales, 39, was arrested the evening of Nov. 5 when he allegedly showed up at the victim's door. Police say it began when Costales contacted the 29-year-old woman through MySpace, an online social website. The woman claims that for the past year he's been sending her unwanted messages. She said she tried to block him from her MySpace account at least five times but he continued to find ways to communicate with her before arriving in Thousand Oaks.

"This was very upsetting and frightening for the victim, who did not expect him to show up," Detective Eric Buschow said.

According to police, the suspect sent the woman video clips of himself and expressed a belief that her writings and poems were meant for him; he told her he was selling his business and coming to California to be with her because he loved her.

On the morning of Nov. 5, the woman's boyfriend allegedly saw Costales at her front door, recognizing him from online photos.

"Investigators from the sexual assault team, including the Internet officer, lured Costales back to the house, where he was arrested," Buschow said.

According to a police report, Costales has a criminal history in Michigan. He was booked on a charge of stalking in the pretrial facility in Ventura and is being held in lieu of $500,000 bail.

"This is rare. We don't handle a lot of stalking under any circumstances," Buschow said.

—Nancy Needham