University Police arrested an assistant professor in the UF College of Pharmacy on Tuesday after authorities said he cyberstalked a woman.
On Tuesday, the woman visited the police department and said Vishal Lamba would not stop sending her emails and texts, even after she told him to stop, according to a police report.
Lamba’s behavior made the woman uncomfortable, and she began to walk to and from certain places with her mother for added safety, according to the report.
The report also states that Lamba followed the woman’s car when he thought she was inside, according to the report. When he walked up to the car, he instead found the woman’s father.
Lamba told police he did not know the woman, but later admitted to speaking with her, according to the report.
When police tried to arrest Lamba, he tensed his arms, pulled away and refused to be handcuffed, according to the report.
The university placed Lamba on paid administrative leave until further notice, UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes wrote in an email Wednesday.
He joined the university on a tenure track in July 2014, according to his resume. Lamba pled not guilty Wednesday, and the woman now has a restraining order against him, according to Alachua County court records.
Police charged Lamba with stalking and resisting an officer without violence. Authorities took him to the Alachua County Jail where he was released Wednesday afternoon on a $5,000 bond.
