A Texas man has officially been sentenced in the stalking case involving Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark.
55-year-old Michael Lewis pled guilty in an Indianapolis court hearing on Monday to charges of stalking and harassing Clark, Mike Potter of WTHR in Indianapolis reported. Lewis was sentenced on the same day to just over 18 months in prison (with credit for time served).
Additionally, Lewis has been ordered to avoid any contact with Clark and to stay away from both Indiana Fever and Indiana Pacers games, events, or properties. Potter notes that the judge had to interrupt the hearing multiple times on Monday due to the behavior of Lewis, who has been held at the Marion County Adult Detention Center ever since his arrest in January.
Lewis reportedly said during his statement to the court before sentencing that “I want [Clark] to be safe” and that “I never threatened her.” Additionally, Lewis went on to prophesize that the end of the world was coming.
You can read Potter’s full report on the situation here.
News broke in mid-January that Lewis had allegedly sent disturbing and sexually violent messages to Clark over the span of several weeks from mid-December to early January. Lewis also claimed in those messages to have driven by Clark’s house and by Gainbridge Fieldhouse (home of the Fever and the Pacers) multiple times.
The two-time WNBA All-Star Clark reportedly told authorities that the messages had made her fearful to the point that she even altered her appearance while out in public. The FBI eventually traced the messages to Indianapolis, and Lewis was arrested in a downtown Indianapolis hotel on Jan. 12.
Clark is in the middle of her sophomore season with the Fever. She has quickly become the undisputed face of the WNBA but has only been able to appear in 13 of 26 games for Indiana this season due to quad and groin injuries.
