Judge Jails New York Man After Arrest On Cyberstalking, Wire Fraud And Mail Fraud Charges; Vitaly Borker Used Multiple Identities To Bully, Terrify Online Shoppers, Feds Say

A New York man was arrested by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service yesterday in a bizarre case in which it was alleged he threatened to assault customers of his bogus online eyeglasses shop.

Vitaly Borker, 34, of Brooklyn, was denied bail. He bizarrely told the New York Times weeks ago that he threatened customers as a means of improving Google search-engine listings for his company, DecorMyEyes.com.

Federal prosecutors now say Borker used multiple identities in his cyberstalking scheme and was selling “counterfeit and inferior quality goods.”

“Online consumers should never be in fear for their safety simply because they have chosen the convenience of Internet shopping,” said U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara. “But that is what allegedly occurred in this case. Vitaly Borker, an alleged cyberbully and fraudster, cheated his customers, and when they complained, tried to intimidate them with obscenity and threats of serious violence.”

The allegations against Borker, who allegedly used the aliases of “Tony Russo” and “Stanley Bolds,” are stunning. Borker allegedly:

• Called one customer a “[f******] whore” and threatened to “come after” and “get” the victim and her husband and to sue them.
• Told another customer he knew where she lived, that he lived only “one bridge away” and that he would come to her home and carry out a violent sexual assault. The threats continued repeatedly.
• Told the same customer he had sued her in small-claims court and provided a bogus docket number.
• Emailed a photo of the victim’s residence to the victim. Later advised her that “I AM WATCHING YOU!”
• Told another female victim that he knew where she lived, that he was watching her and threatened to “kick her ass” and carry out a violent sexual assault.
• Threatened a male customer and emailed the customer’s work colleagues, accusing the customer of being a narcotics user and describing the customer to his colleagues as a homosexual.
• Called another customer vulgar names and threatened to “crush” eyeglass frames the customer had returned and “ship the powder back to him.”

After Borker’s arrest, U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael H. Dolinger denied him bail, saying that the defendant was either “verging on psychotic” or had “an explosive personality,” according to the New York Times.

The Times earlier had reported that Borker claimed to have mistreated customers because it helped him improve his search-engine rankings.

Read the federal complaint against Borker.