An Oregon man has been arrested and charged with stalking and harassment. University of Connecticut Police said Paige Bueckers, a women's basketball player, had made several “concerning social media posts” fantasizing about a relationship with her.
Robert Cole Parmalee, 40, was arrested Friday and charged with disturbing the peace, electronic stalking and harassment, according to an arrest affidavit from the University of Connecticut Police Department.
Paige Bueckers of the University of Connecticut Huskies plays against the Iowa Hokies during the semifinals of the NCAA women's basketball tournament Final Four at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on April 5, 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Parmalee, Grants Pass, Oregon The matter first came to police's attention in the summer of 2024 after several members of the University of Connecticut's public relations department received an email that included “incoherent comments” and a reference to Bueckers.
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According to the incident report, Parmalee claimed in the emails that he was a member of royalty and wanted to marry Bueckers. He also made references to Greek mythology, likening himself to Apollo and Bueckers to Athena. Further investigation revealed that Parmalee had made similar posts on social media, including a poem proposing marriage to Bueckers.
“The posts were deemed unusual but were not found to be of a threatening nature,” police said at the time.
Robert Cole Parmalee, 40, was arrested Friday and charged with disturbing the peace, electronic stalking and harassment. (University of Connecticut Police Department)
Less than a month later, in July, another incident report cited several more “incoherent” emails from Parmalee about Bookers and other incidents. College basketball playerSeveral women, including Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese, posted comments that police records say were not “harassing or threatening in nature.”
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However, Parmalee was arrested by Connecticut State Police in late August after being spotted walking along Route 20 near Bradley International Airport. He told police at the time that he was “going to see Paige.” At the time, he was wanted on an arson charge in Oregon and was taken into custody. Connecticut police later learned that the charges would be dropped.
An arrest warrant was issued on Thursday for charges of stalking and harassment. According to the arrest affidavit, evidence collected from various social media platforms, including Facebook and TikTok, showed he was “attaching himself to [victim] He was in a relationship but had no desire to get married. [victim]” He also mentioned his family.
Bueckers contacted police and explained that Parmalee began sending her direct messages on Instagram beginning in February 2024 but never contacted her directly. After learning of Parmalee's arrest in Connecticut in August, “I determined that Parmalee was attempting to contact me directly and I became concerned,” Bueckers said.
Paige Bueckers told police Parmalee began sending her direct messages on Instagram in February 2024 but never contacted her directly. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
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She expressed concern for the safety of herself, her family and her teammates.
Parmalee appeared in court Monday and is being held on $100,000 bail. To ESPN. A protective and no-contact order was also issued against “PB.”
Parmalee has an extensive criminal history dating from 2002 to 2023, including criminal damage to property, theft, sexual abuse, harassment, theft, DUI, driving while license suspended/revoked and possession of methamphetamine.
He is due to appear in court again on October 22nd.
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