ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- A hearing was held in federal court Friday for the Irondequoit Police Department officer charged with cyber stalking and unlawful access to a protected computer.
Prosecutors say officer William Rosica stalked and harassed his ex-girlfriend for more than a year after she ended a three-year relationship.
Rosica is accused of sending her harassing texts, phone calls, and emails between March 2016 and February 2017.
According to court paperwork, Rosica once told the victim, "I am at a crossroads. Either I let you walk away and we live our separate lives or short of killing you, I destroy every aspect of your life. You tell me what I should do."
Rosica is also accused of trying to contact the alleged victim's pharmacy and impersonating her personal physician. The charges also accuse him of hacking into the computer system of his ex-girlfriend's employer more than 280 times using a network to disguise his identity.
Bail was denied as it's believed Rosica's behavior could escalate into something more serious.
"I equate this to a domestic violence situation where he abused her psychologically and emotionally. At this point, he's lost his career, his family, his friends know about it. I think he has nothing to lose at this point," said Melissa Marangola, federal prosecutor.
The allegations also accuse Rosica of harassing his former girlfriend's ex-husband to extent where the ex-husband's cable box was hacked as the Super Bowl was entering overtime.
"He obviously was very sophisticated in terms of his computer knowledge and the FBI did a fantastic job using their technology to uncover his identity," Marangola said.
Since his arrest Thursday, the United States Attorney's Office says others have come forward expressing concern for the victim's well being if Rosica makes bail.
'We've received numerous phone calls, one from a law enforcement official who said this was a pattern of conduct from Officer Rosica, he had a prior victim as I stated in court. We received a message from the defendant's own brother who's a Catholic priest stating he has concerns should he be released."
Rosica's next court date is scheduled for March 31 at 3:30 p.m.
If found guilty, the charges carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.