Travel influencer felt 'hunted like prey' when her 'stalker' arrived in Bali threatening to kidnap her
An American travel influencer felt 'hunted like prey' after her 'stalker' arrived in Bali, Indonesia, after threatening to kidnap her, a court heard.
Alexandra Saper described Rob Keating, from Britain, as 'someone who is deeply obsessed' and 'mentally ill' after he sent her a message following his arrival on the island in which he referred to himself as a 'serial killer'.
She spoke of her ordeal in a video she posted from Laos, the country she escaped to, which was shown to a jury.
Suspect: Rob Keating from Hampshire in England has pleaded not guilty to two counts of stalking involving serious alarm or distress
In the video, she said: 'I want you to imagine what it feels like to be hunted like prey.'
She revealed she was 'exhausted' after 'being run out of [her] home in Indonesia '.
Saper said: 'I'm exhausted, and I feel defeated today - and I have over half a million people who have watched my story and advocated for me. Most women don't have that level of support and reach and network.
'What do our governments expect us to do to protect ourselves to not get killed or raped or attacked or kidnapped?
'I want my life back, I want to go home, I want to feel safe.'
Keating is accused of sending 'incessant' messages to the 33-year-old former lawyer, who now earns a living from her Instagram page 'The Wayfaress', which has more than 100,000 followers.
The court has heard these included him describing his sexual fantasies in graphic detail to her and expressing a wish to 'go Fifty Shades Of Grey on' her.
Following his messaging, the 39-year-old travelled to Bali - where she lived - on a one-way ticket with rope in his luggage, the court has been told.
Keating is a traffic worker who was living in his sister's garage in Hampshire, England, at the time of the alleged offences.
He has pleaded not guilty at Portsmouth Crown Court in England to two counts of stalking involving serious alarm or distress.
The court heard he sent hundreds of emails and around 30 video messages to the influencer between August 2022 and January 2023.
He travelled to the Indonesian island at the end of January 2023 and sent messages after his arrival, the jury was told.
'I would really like to see you - bring security if you must', he said, and, 'I didn't come here expecting to jump into bed with you'.
Speaking as if he was Saper, Keating asked: 'How can this guy not be a serial killer?
'How can this go right if there's so much wrong inside of him?'
In response to a message from someone on social media regarding his alleged stalking, he said: 'Either way, it's been a win-win - she'll have a book out and I've done this reinvention thing.'
Police found black rope, which was shown to the jury, in his suitcase when he was arrested on his return to the UK in March 2023.
The court heard that Keating posted a screenshot of a plane ticket from Heathrow Airport in London to Bali on his social media with the caption 'round two' in October 2024.
Saper informed police he had done this, and he was subsequently arrested. The trial continues.
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