Man arrested on Long Island for allegedly stalking Drew Barrymore
LONG ISLAND - Chad Busto was released on Friday morning, but the 43-year-old will now have to wear a GPS tag and stay away from actress Drew Barrymore according to the judge’s orders.
This comes after he was spotted riding a bicycle up into private driveways looking for Barrymore. He was ultimately arrested by Southampton Town Police, charged with stalking for allegedly trying to track down the star at her summer home out east.
This wasn’t the first time that Busto had tried to contact Barrymore.
Earlier this week Barrymore was temporarily taken off the stage at a public event in New York City after Busto, who lives in Washington DC, shouted her name before rushing toward her.
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According to police, detectives went to an apartment on Ticonderoga Court to investigate a murder that happened back in June in Central Islip.
"I believe we have a connection from the past," Busto said. "I believe I met her at the Hard Rock Hotel after Lalapalooza in 2007, I’ve seen her in multiple locations and thought we had a history."
On Thursday afternoon, Southampton Town Police say Busto knocked on someone’s door in Sagaponack demanding he get the location of where Barrymore lives, so he could speak to her about a lawsuit.
"I believe I won a federal lawsuit 2.5 years ago," Busto said.
Mental health expert Dr. Scott Krakower with Northwell Health has never met with Busto but says any time someone behaves erratically around celebrities, it needs to be taken seriously.
"They idolize them and look up to them when it becomes obsessive and when it crossed the line it becomes a stalking behavior and people have trouble regulating what’s going on," he said.
FOX 5 reached out to Barrymore’s team and haven’t heard back. Busto who prosecutors say has a criminal history is due back in court on September 12.