Authorities in Indianapolis have charged a 55-year-old Texan with felony stalking of Indiana Fever star and WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark.

Michael Thomas Lewis is accused of repeatedly and continuously harassing Clark, 22, beginning Dec. 16, the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office wrote in a court filing Saturday. Jail records show Lewis is due in court Tuesday.

Lewis posted numerous messages on Clark’s X account, according to an affidavit from Marion County Sheriff’s Lt.

In one, he said he drove past Gainbridge Fieldhouse — one of the arenas where the Fever play home games — three times a day, and in another he said he was “with one foot on a banana peel and the other on a stalking charge.” Other messages sent to Clark were sexually explicit.

The posts “actually caused Caitlin Clark to feel terrorized, frightened, intimidated or threatened,” and the implicit or explicit threat was also made “with the intent to place Caitlin Clark in reasonable fear of sexual assault,” Marion County Superior Court prosecutors wrote. Court report.

The FBI learned that Account X belonged to Lewis and that the messages were sent from IP addresses associated with an Indianapolis hotel and a downtown public library.

Indianapolis police spoke with Lewis on Jan. 8 in his hotel room. He told officers he was in Indianapolis on vacation. When asked why he was posting so many posts about Clark, Lewis replied, “It’s the same reason everyone posts,” according to court documents.

He told police he meant no harm and fantasized about a relationship with Clark.

“It’s imagination, fantasy and a joke, and it has nothing to do with threats,” he told police, according to court documents.

Asking the court for a higher-than-standard bail, prosecutors said Lewis traveled from his home in Texas to Indianapolis “with the intention of being in close proximity to the victim.”

Prosecutors also sought a removal order as a special condition if Lewis is released from prison before trial. Prosecutors asked that Lewis be ordered to stay away from Gainbridge and Hinkle halls where the Fever play home games.

The Associated Press could not determine Monday if Lewis had an attorney available to comment on his behalf.

Fever officials did not respond to an Associated Press request for comment.

Clark was named the Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year for 2024. After leading Iowa to last year’s national championship game, she was the top pick in the WNBA draft and earned league Rookie of the Year honors.