Media reports indicate the man accused of cyberstalking and extorting nude photos of college-age women, including one in Ann Arbor, is a former campaign staffer for Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan and Newt Gingrich.
Multiple outlets, including the New York Daily News and Politico, are reporting Adam Savader, 21, of Great Neck, NY, worked for the Republican heavyweights during the 2012 presidential campaign. Savader is charged with two federal crimes for allegedly harassing 15 women from Sept. 30 through February using the Internet.
Many reports cite Facebook and Twitter profiles that reportedly belong to Savader as the sources of photos of him with Romney, Ryan and Gingrich. AnnArbor.com has been unable to independently confirm Savader’s work for the Republican candidates.
A message was left with Michael Soshnick, the attorney representing Savader, seeking comment and confirmation of Savader’s political background Wednesday afternoon.
A federal affidavit released Tuesday revealed a woman reported someone texted her from a Google Voice number on Sept. 30. The person, who said his name was John Smith but is alleged to be Savader, told the woman he had nude photos of her and would send them to her parents if she didn’t send him more.
Savader allegedly repeated the process with 14 other women, eight of whom have not been identified.
The woman reported the incident to the Ann Arbor Police Department, who then turned the case over to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI tracked the IP address of the email used to create the Google Voice numbers used in the text messages to homes Savader lived in, in both Great Neck and Quincy, Mass.
A Facebook profile of an Adam Savader shows photos of a college-aged man with Romney, Ryan and Gingrich and lists Great Neck North High School as one of his networks. A Twitter profile for the same Adam Savader includes photos of the man with Ryan.
The Twitter bio identifies the man reported to be Savader as “American Patriot. Reagan Republican. Formerly @PRyan’s sole intern on @MittRomney’s campaign and a @newtgingrich campaign staffer.”
Savader was arrested in New York last week and will stand trial in Michigan. Gina Balaya, public information officer for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Michigan, said he has yet to be taken to Michigan to face the charges.
Kyle Feldscher covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kylefeldscher@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.