Garbage singer Shirley Manson bombarded with death threats from cyber-stalker

By STUART MACDONALD
Published on 18/07/2012 00:00

GARBAGE frontwoman Shirley Manson has called in police after being subjected to death threats on Twitter.

The Scottish singer has said she is in fear for her own safety and that of her family after falling victim to a cyber-stalker.

A Twitter user going by the name @Gunn2urhead has 
bombarded Garbage’s account with hundreds of wild allegations and threats against Manson.

The US-based group’s manager Paul Kremen contacted police, prompting an investigation by detectives in the Los Angeles Police Department’s Hollywood division.

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge has also signed a search warrant compelling Twitter executives to surrender information to the LAPD revealing @Gunn2urhead’s identity and location.

The warrant contains details of a statement Edinburgh-born Manson, 45, gave to an LAPD detective in May, stating that she had received upwards of 60 messages a day for the 
previous two weeks.

It reads: “She stated that she is in great fear for her and her family’s safety due to the nature of the threats, the sheer volume of them, and the ‘crazy’ sounding messages being posted towards her.

“She stated she has never had anything like this on this level occur to her and she is very frightened and wants the threats to be investigated fully.”

The threats started appearing just one day after the multi-million selling rock group released its new album, Not Your Kind of People, in May.

One of the tweets directed at Manson said: “EVERY NIGHT AND DAY SHE’S MESSING WITH ME!!! CAN’T TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER!!!

“SO YOU WANT ME TO KILL YOU OR MYSELF?

“IM GONNA KILL U BITCH!!!!!!!”

Detective Kevin Becker, the supervisor of the threat unit of the LAPD’s Hollywood division, which is overseeing Manson’s cyber-stalking case, said that officers hope to bring charges against the Twitter user soon. He said: “If I send a message that I am going to kill you, it raises the threat level. It is a criminal threat.

“These people, sometimes have mental issues, and we don’t want them to hurt themselves or the celebrity.

“People get fixated on celebrities, and on some occasions it turns into something more serious. We have to get him before he takes it to the next level.”

Rhonda Saunders, a prosecutor with the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office, said social networking sites had led to the number of celebrity cyber-stalking cases rocketing.

She added: “The internet makes it so much easier for stalkers. They aren’t fans, they are fanatics. Someone can send 1,000 emails in one hour. It makes it so much easier for them.”

“I think celebrities should give up Twitter unless they put up basic information and don’t talk about their kids or personal things. All they are doing is giving the stalker information.”

Manson joined Garbage in 1994 and the group went on to have a string of hits including Stupid Girl and The World Is Not Enough.