A St. Paul woman’s ex-boyfriend posted her address on Facebook along with an invitation to men suggesting she would pay them for sex if they came to her home, authorities say.
The woman contacted police after strangers started showing up at her house on Margaret Street in August in response to the ads, which were posted on the walls of several fictitious Facebook accounts created by Kou Thao, according to the criminal complaint filed against him in Ramsey County District Court this week.
Thao, 45, was charged with one count of gross misdemeanor-level stalking for his alleged conduct. He made his first court appearance in the case Friday.
The advertisements indicated that Thao’s ex would take the men to a private location after meeting at her St. Paul house, the complaint said. Once there, she would pay the men between $40 and $200 in exchange for sex, the advertisements said.
One of the posts was made on a fictitious Facebook account created using Thao’s ex-girlfriend’s husband’s name so that his family and friends would see it, charges say.
The woman cried and told officers that she was “very fearful” of what would happen to her as a result of the posts, the complaint said.
Police issued an arrest warrant for Thao in late August. He reportedly turned himself in Sept. 20.
In an interview with officers, the St. Paul man allegedly admitted to taking a photograph of his ex’s address from one of her electric bills and posting it to Facebook along with the advertisement soliciting men to her house for sex, the complaint said.
Thao’s criminal record includes two driving-while-intoxicated convictions in 2015 and 2016.
Neither he nor his public defender could be immediately reached for comment.
Thao’s next court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 10.