After a two-day trial last week, a Flagler County jury found defendant Jerome Malerba guilty as charged in a disturbing stalking and soliciting a child case.
The Florida defendant is guilty of Soliciting a Child or Person Believed to be a Child for Unlawful Sexual Conduct using Computer Services or Devices, Aggravated Stalking Person Under 16 years of age and Unlawful use of a Two-Way Communication Device.
In 2020, Malerba befriended a young teen girl and harassed her in multiple different ways for a year and a half. He sent her multiple sexually inappropriate text messages, emails and voicemails after being told to stop contacting her. The defendant also attempted to solicit sex acts from the victim through text message during the summer of 2022.
In addition to the harassment over the phone, Malerba followed the teen or her family members on more than one occasion.
“Stalking demonstrates an escalation of sexually deviant behavior by the defendant,” State Attorney R.J. Larizza said about the case. “We are fortunate he was arrested, charged and convicted before his behavior escalated even further.”
The case was investigated by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant State Attorney Melissa Clark successfully tried the case for the state. The Honorable Terence Perkins presided over the case and is set to pronounce sentence on February 21, 2024.
