Utah police officer arrested for stalking

LAYTON, Utah — A Utah police officer is on administrative leave after being arrested for stalking his ex-girlfriend.

Court documents identify the man as 33-year-old Austin Christofferson.

On July 12, police responded to a call from a woman reporting a case of stalking. Documents said that Christofferson’s ex-girlfriend saw him waiting for her at her apartment as she was coming home.

She said she knew it was him because of the vehicle he was in. She said she mouthed “why are you here?” to the man while raising her arms. Afterward, he left the apartment.

She went on to tell police that Christofferson had been stalking her consistently since December 2022 and that he was a “law enforcement officer.”

Court documents state that since July 29th — the day she ended the relationship — Christofferson had sent her “approximately 68 text messages and 35 calls,” despite messages back from her telling him to stop contacting her and to leave her alone. Among these messages was a photograph of the woman and Christofferson with blood on it. The woman said this made her “fearful for her safety” and that he had previously threatened to shoot himself if they broke up. 

The woman said that Christofferson had shown up to her home repeatedly in his police vehicle and uniform. She said this also made her fear for her safety because of his influence with police.

During one of these incidents, he showed up at her home at night and “was banging on the front door and looking through her window.” The woman said she hid on the floor so he would not see her.

Police arrested Christofferson for stalking, a third-degree felony. After conducting a lethality assessment, police found him to be a high danger to the woman. 

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• Utah lawmakers consider changes to stalking laws