A federal grand jury has indicted Paul Raymond Flood, 54, of Castro Valley, on charges of cyberstalking, witness tampering, and obstruction of a criminal investigation through bribery, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of California announced today.
According to the indictment, Flood, a former FBI special agent from 2007 to 2019, began harassing a first-year law student, referred to as “Victim-1” or “V-1,” after she contacted him in October 2018 for career advice, the U.S. attorney’s office said.
V-1 had been referred to Flood by a family member identified as “B-1,” the department said.
The indictment alleges Flood quickly escalated his conduct, sending V-1 a diamond ring in mid-Oct. 2018, using at least 79 phone numbers and messaging apps to contact her between Oct. 2018 and September 2019, the department said.
According to the indictment, V-1 initially did not report Flood out of fear of retaliation. However, she filed a report with federal and local authorities in June 2019, the department added.