A man has been charged with multiple felonies for allegedly threatening to kill “the-real-housewives” target=”_blank”>Real Housewives of Orange County< in her California home.
The Orange County District Attorney’s office said in a statement Thursday that Ryan Matthew Geraghty, 33, who had allegedly been extorting tens of thousands of dollars in exchange for not selling nude photographs of Vargas to the media, faces several felony counts.
Geraghty was charged with extortion by force or threat, assault with a firearm, criminal threats, corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant, grossly negligent discharge of a firearm and firearm by a felon. He was also charged with two misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance.
Newport Beach Police arrested Geraghty Tuesday after he went to Vargas’ home and allegedly pointed a gun at the reality star “with whom he had a romantic relationship” and threatened to kill her for refusing to give him any more money, police said.
Elizabeth Lyn Vargas was not seriously harmed during an alleged attack at her Newport Beach home.
(Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
Geraghty is also accused of punching Vargas in the face.
A felony domestic violence complaint was filed Thursday in an Orange County court, where Geraghty is scheduled to be arraigned.
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Since Geraghty already has three prior strikes on his record under California’s Three Strikes Law, state law prohibits a judge from offering him probation, according to authorities.
"The Real Housewives of Orange County," from left, are Emily Simpson, Gina Kirschenheiter, Braunwyn Windham-Burke, Kelly Dodd, Shannon Storms Beador and Elizabeth Lyn Vargas.
(Casey Durkin)
“There are some members of our society who are so violent that they cannot live among the rest of us,” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in a statement.
“California’s Three Strikes Law was designed to protect law-abiding residents from being subjected to a never-ending campaign of violence by individuals who have no respect for the law and no respect for human life. Thankfully, the Newport Beach Police Department prevented serious harm from coming to this woman, and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office will do everything it can to prevent this violent criminal from being able to harm anyone else.”
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Geraghty faces a maximum sentence of 75 years and four months to life in prison if convicted on all charges.
