By Gabriel Monte
January 9, 2025
Source: Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
Photo / Image Source: Unsplash,
Idalou man facing federal cyber stalking charge to remain in jail
A 29-year-old Idalou man facing federal cyber stalking charges will remain in custody for the duration of his case after a judge found he poses a threat to his alleged victim.
Huston Tyler McLearen, who has been held at the Lubbock County Detention Center since his Nov. 20 arrest, was indicted Nov. 13 on a federal count of cyber stalking.
He is accused of messaging his ex-girlfriend with the intent to kill, injure, harass, intimidate or otherwise cause her substantial emotional distress, according to the indictment.
The charge against McLearen stems from a FBI investigation that began in June when the woman sent an online tip that he was harassing her.
During her interview with FBI agents, the woman reportedly said McLearen was physically and verbally abusive during their two-year relationship.
She said she moved out of Lubbock because she was afraid of what he might do to her and stopped contacting him in May. However, she said McLearen continued his abuse through telephone calls, text messages and social media posts.
The messages he sent the woman included texts stating: “I’m taking you down with me this time, except I’m killing myself right after. Have fun with the aftermath" and "I’m not going to stop until you either kill yourself or admit to sleeping with other guys,” according to court documents.
He reportedly also called the woman, who does not live in Lubbock, 39 times the day he sent the threatening messages.
A mutual friend of the couple reportedly called McLearen pretending to sympathize with him and recorded the conversation during which he reportedly admitted to sending explicit images of the woman to her brother, father and employer.
He also reportedly said he wanted to shoot the woman, saying that his father owns a “machine gun,” and that he had been thinking about buying items from the “dark web,” court records state.
"McLearen engaged in a methodical, extensive campaign to abuse, torment, harass, and intimidate (the woman). McLearen has admitted, on a recording, that he would shoot Doe if the conditions were right," prosecutors argued. "McLearen said and did all these things before facing a federal indictment and the prospect of a lengthy period of incarceration.
Now that Doe has reported McLearen to the FBI and held herself out as the main witness to his crimes, McLearen is even more of a threat to the safety of Doe, himself, and to the community."
McLearen also reportedly admitted to creating fake social media accounts to post negative reviews about the woman's work and to encourage men to contact her for “cheap and affordable pictures." He also used the accounts to pretend to be her and solicit prostitution, court documents state.
During McLearen's interview with investigators, he denied spreading the woman's explicit images. However, a search of his phone yielded more than 300 explicit images of the woman, some of which were the same ones that were sent over the fake social media accounts that were made using McLearen's email accounts and phone numbers.
During a detention hearing five days after his arrest in the The Humanities Center at Texas Tech, McLearen's attorney argued that his client, a Tech student, was not a flight risk and has strong ties to the Idalou community where he lives with his parents.
However, U.S. Magistrate Judge Amanda R. Burch found that the evidence, which she described as "very concerning," showed no condition or combination of conditions she could impose would assure the safety of the community if she allowed McLearen to be released on bond.
McLearen appealed to U.S. District Judge James Hendrix, who issued a ruling affirming Burch's decision.
Hendrix stated in his opinion that the evidence against McLearen was strong.
"The text messages, recorded conversations, and the defendant’s admissions during interviews with authorities all show McLearen’s repeated, threatening behavior toward the alleged victim," Hendrix wrote in his opinion.
Hendrix also considered McLearen's criminal history, which includes arrests for assault on a family member and convictions for making a terroristic threat. He also faces state-level charges out of Comal County related to his current case.
Hendrix said he found McLearen’s alleged use of fake fictitious social media accounts and "contemplation of using the dark web" shows McLearen's determination to threaten the woman.
"The sheer volume of communications" McLearen sent the woman also showed he was not likely to abide by conditions prohibiting him from contacting the woman or possess internet-capable devices.
At present, McCLearen, who has pleaded not guilty to the charge, is tentatively set to stand trial in February.
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