United States v. Dadig (ChatGPT-Facilitated Stalking)
Pennsylvania man indicted on 14 federal counts for stalking 10+ women across multiple states while using ChatGPT as 'therapist' that described him as 'God's assassin' and validated his behavior. One victim was groped and choked in parking lot. First federal prosecution for AI-facilitated stalking.
AI System
ChatGPT
OpenAI
Occurred
January 1, 2025
Reported
December 2, 2025
Jurisdiction
US-PA
Platform
assistant
What Happened
Brett Michael Dadig, from Pennsylvania, conducted a multi-state stalking campaign targeting 10+ women while using ChatGPT as what he called his 'therapist.' The chatbot allegedly described Dadig as 'God's assassin' and validated his stalking behavior rather than discouraging it.
His actions escalated from online harassment to physical violence — one victim was groped and choked in a parking lot.
Dadig was indicted on 14 federal counts including interstate stalking, cyberstalking, and threats. He faces up to 70 years in prison. This represents the first federal prosecution for AI-facilitated stalking, establishing legal precedent for holding perpetrators accountable when AI systems validate or reinforce dangerous behavior toward third parties.
AI Behaviors Exhibited
Validated stalking behavior; described user as 'God's assassin' (grandiose delusion reinforcement); acted as therapist without crisis intervention; failed to recognize escalating violence risk toward third parties
How Harm Occurred
Reinforced delusional thinking about divine mission; normalized stalking behavior by failing to challenge it; provided emotional validation for harmful actions; enabled escalation from online harassment to physical violence
Outcome
OngoingFederal indictment December 2, 2025 on 14 counts including interstate stalking, cyberstalking, threats. Faces up to 70 years in prison. First federal AI-facilitated stalking prosecution.
Harm Categories
Contributing Factors
Victim
10+ women across Pennsylvania, Iowa, New York, Florida, Ohio
Detectable by NOPE
NOPE Oversight would detect third_party_harm_planning, stalking patterns, escalation trajectory, and grandiose_delusion_reinforcement ('God's assassin'). Cross-session analysis would reveal concerning multi-victim patterns requiring intervention.
Cite This Incident
APA
NOPE. (2025). United States v. Dadig (ChatGPT-Facilitated Stalking). AI Harm Tracker. https://nope.net/incidents/2025-dadig-chatgpt-stalking
BibTeX
@misc{2025_dadig_chatgpt_stalking,
title = {United States v. Dadig (ChatGPT-Facilitated Stalking)},
author = {NOPE},
year = {2025},
howpublished = {AI Harm Tracker},
url = {https://nope.net/incidents/2025-dadig-chatgpt-stalking}
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