Accused stalker Michal Pacek indicted in harassment case against Suffolk nurse, no bail granted

A Suffolk nurse, who was allegedly harassed by a New Jersey man for more than three years, faced her accused stalker Thursday in Criminal Court in Riverhead as he was arraigned on a half-dozen criminal charges and sent to jail without bail.

Michal Pacek, 47, of Bayonne, pleaded not guilty to a six-count indictment, which included a felony charge of first-deg ree criminal contempt for violating an order of protection against Melanie Smith, along with two counts of third-degree stalking and three counts of second-degree aggravated harassment, both misdemeanors.  

Assistant District Attorney Christina O'Dea told state Supreme Court Justice Timothy Mazzei that Pacek was an "extreme flight risk" who stalked and harassed Smith for three years.

"He has sent numerous death threats to the complaining witness," O'Dea said, urging that Pacek be held without bail. "He has also sent packages to the complainants' parents' home, containing lingerie, sex toys and additional items."

Pacek's defense attorney for the hearing did not object and Mazzei remanded the construction worker, while granting new orders of protection for Smith and her parents.

Smith, who has never met Pacek — nor been in the same room with him before Thursday's hearing — sat in the fourth-floor courtroom alongside her attorney, Adam Uris, seldom taking her eyes off the man she says has terrorized her for years.

"It felt surreal to actually physically see the person that's been behind this for three years," Smith said after the hearing. "And at the same time, although there is some fear — constant fear — I felt powerful being in that room."

Pacek stood in court, his hands cuffed behind his back, never looking back at the gallery. He's scheduled for a bail conference on June 24

Defense attorney Christopher Gioe, who was assigned Pacek's case, did not respond to requests for comment. 

Following Newsday's coverage of Smith's case, Pacek was arrested by the New Jersey State Police Department's Fugitive Task Force and he waived extradition to Long Island.

In Central Islip on Wednesday, Pacek pleaded not guilty to three counts of second-degree criminal contempt, a misdemeanor, after failing to show up for a court-ordered psychological fitness exam.

"Thank you to the New Jersey authorities for helping our detectives to apprehend the defendant and get him back here to New York to face felony charges," said Emily O'Neill, a spokeswoman for the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office.

Newsday first reported on Pacek's alleged harassment of Smith, which began in May 2023 after she attempted to sell an old iPhone on Facebook Marketplace and received what she described as a bizarre message filled with graphic sexual remarks from a man she'd never met.

Since then, Smith said she received hundreds of sexually explicit and violent calls, messages, social media posts and emails from Pacek, who also sent her dozens of unsolicited gifts.

Pacek, who has never physically harmed Smith, was arrested in July 2024 on stalking and aggravated harassment charges after showing up at her parents' house in Suffolk. He spent about 90 days in jail pending trial before being found mentally unfit to stand trial. But he was released from a psychiatric facility after less than one day, triggering the automatic dismissal of the case and an order of protection Smith had secured against Pacek.

In April 2025, Pacek was charged with second-degree aggravated harassment and third- and fourth-degree stalking, records show. On the eve of trial in December, Pacek's attorney requested a psychological fitness exam but Pacek failed to show up and a warrant was issued for bail jumping and criminal contempt, records indicate.

Smith said she won't rest until Pacek is permanently incarcerated. 

"This is Step 1, and this step should have been taken quite a long time ago," Smith said. "So this is just Step 1 in this journey."

Uris said prosecutors could have arrested Pacek months ago but took action only following Newsday's reporting.

"The district attorney's office and the police seem to be taking some action now, only in response to the spotlight that's been shined on them by Newsday," Uris said. "But a three-year pattern of behavior, not only by the defendant but by the district attorney and the courts, is going to take a little more time to shake out to prove that they're actually going to take this seriously this time."

O'Neill declined to comment on Uris' remarks.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.