Apple CEO Tim Cook Harassed By Possibly Armed Stalker Who's Claiming To Be His Wife

A California judge has granted Cupertino technology giant Apple a restraining order against a Virginia woman with “erratic, threatening, and bizarre behavior” who has been stalking Apple CEO Tim Cook for more than a year, the Santa Clara County Superior Court confirmed on Monday afternoon.

According to court filings submitted on Thursday, the company claimed the woman had been trespassing at Cook’s Palo Alto residence and emailing him photos of a loaded pistol.

In its application, Apple included copies of photos, emails, and tweets purporting to have come from the suspected harasser in the South Bay area, believing the woman may be armed, the Daily Beast reported. The paperwork further noted the woman may return to Cook’s home or possibly locate him otherwise.

The order, released on Friday, bars the 45-year-old woman from possessing guns, approaching Cook and any Apple employees, entering any Apple property, or visiting Cook’s home. Violating the restraining order may result in jail time and a $1,000 fine.

On Halloween 2020, the Apple CEO first learned about the woman’s obsession after she tagged him on Twitter using the last name “Cook” and claimed she was his wife and that they share a twin. The woman, according to the application, would repeatedly tweet about the purported relationship at the time.

Between late October and mid-November the same year, she reportedly emailed Cook at least 200 times, where the messages showed “a significant escalation in tone, becoming threatening and highly disturbing,” the application said, which noted the woman had told Cook her patience was “almost done.”

Cook had also been plagued with a barrage of missives containing photos of a snub-nosed revolver and cartridges. By September last year, the woman “became obsessed” with the business executive’s condo in Palo Alto and sent him an email applying to be his roommate, according to Mercury News.

The filing said the woman drove a Porsche Macan SUV from Virginia to Palo Alto and showed up at Cook’s home on Oct. 22 but was told by security to go home. However, the woman would insist on waiting in her car for Cook, prompting Palo Alto police to respond to the alleged trespassing.

After police stopped her attempts to flee, the woman then told the officers that she was staying in Palo Alto and ultimately threatened them that she “could get violent” despite not possessing any weapon in her car, according to the cops who searched her Porsche. She was then let go.

Following the incident, the Virginia woman would continue emailing Cook and at one point, provided a San Jose address.

Subsequently, a week before Christmas, the stalker demanded hundreds of millions of dollars via email. By New Year’s Day, she used violent language about Cook using a new Twitter account.

The application said that the most recent email is now ordering Cook to vacate his property after threatening to burn down his home, NPR noted.

A hearing into the matter is due on March 29.