A Massachusetts man was arrested Thursday, October 1, after a federal grand jury in Boston indicted him on one count of cyberstalking in a case involving Katie Miller, the conservative podcaster and wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller.

John Anthony Proia III, 41, of Waltham, allegedly contacted the victim at least 40 times between August 3 and September 23. Prosecutors say he called and sent messages from changing phone numbers, sometimes several times in a single day. The indictment does not name the victim; a person familiar with the case identified her as Katie Miller.

Proia appeared in federal court Thursday afternoon and pleaded not guilty. If convicted, he could face up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. 

The alleged contacts continued for more than seven weeks. Some calls came late at night. Prosecutors say the victim received both calls she answered and voicemails from a male caller who used a menacing tone and frequently swore.

Prosecutors say Proia used free internet calling and texting apps to obtain the numbers. The apps allow users to generate new numbers and conceal their identities.

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Her father’s phone number was among those contacted, according to prosecutors. They reproduced a text referring to Stephen Miller’s Jewish identity and calling him a Nazi and white supremacist. It ended by asking Katie Miller's father about his daughter: “Did you raise her to be trash or did that just happen naturally?”

Her mother received a photograph of her daughter and two insulting texts, according to prosecutors. One included a vulgar insult; the other questioned how she could be proud of her daughter. 

U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said the family’s lives had been profoundly disrupted. She warned that anonymous communications would not shield their sender from prosecution: “We will find you, and we will hold you accountable.”

Proia’s arrest was carried out by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force. Ted Docks, the special agent in charge in Boston, said the alleged campaign sought to frighten the victim and her family and inflicted significant emotional distress.

The prosecution has been assigned to Alathea Porter, an assistant U.S. attorney in the National Security Unit.

Miller shared Attorney General Todd Blanche’s announcement of the indictment on X.

She thanked Blanche, Foley, and the FBI’s Washington Field Office for keeping her family safe. She also welcomed the grand jury’s decision:

The investigation also became an issue inside the FBI's Washington Field Office. Two senior counterterrorism supervisors were recently reassigned, in part because of dissatisfaction with their handling of the Miller investigation, according to people familiar with the personnel changes.

Washington Field Office chief Darren Cox said in a statement that he had ordered the reassignments and denied that FBI Director Kash Patel had directed him to do so, saying the decision was based on a review of the office's needs.

The Millers previously moved into military housing after protesters circulated flyers with Stephen Miller's home address in Arlington, Virginia, and organized demonstrations in their neighborhood.