Briana Ortega, a 29-year-old fitness influencer with a large online following, says her life was upended after a Riverside County sheriff’s deputy allegedly used his badge and access to confidential databases to stalk her. In a new civil lawsuit, Ortega accuses Deputy Eric Piscatella, 30, of pursuing her relentlessly for months—despite repeated rejections—and exploiting his position to find her personal information. The lawsuit also names Riverside County and several of Piscatella’s colleagues, who Ortega claims knew about his behavior but failed to intervene.

An Immediate Obsession

According to court filings, at a community event in September 2023 in Coachella Ortega’s son approached deputy Piscatella for a sticker. The lawsuit says Piscatella learned Ortega’s name during that encounter and used it to illegally access her private records. Four months later, he allegedly appeared uninvited at her La Quinta home, in full uniform and armed, asking about her daughter’s whereabouts. Ortega recalls feeling immediately alarmed.

A Pattern of Unwanted Contact

What followed, she says, was a pattern of unwanted contact and escalating intrusions. Piscatella began texting her, though Ortega says she never gave him her number. When her sister became the victim of a crime, Ortega reached out for help in February 2024—only to have Piscatella respond by asking her on a date. After she refused, the complaint states, his behavior intensified into “obsession.”

The Deputy Wanted to “Steal” Her

The lawsuit alleges Piscatella routinely searched Ortega’s information, including her license plate, using the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System. On July 2, 2024, after reportedly running her plates, the deputy showed up at her house claiming a stranger had jumped the fence. Ortega, who’d just returned from the airport minutes earlier, believed he’d been watching her movements. Once inside, she says, he commented on her looks, pressed her for her new phone number—a number she had not shared with him—and continued his pursuit through texts declaring he would “steal” her from her boyfriend.

Ortega Fears Retaliation

Ortega eventually reported him, and prosecutors filed seven felony charges for misusing law enforcement databases. Those charges were later reduced to misdemeanors, and Piscatella pleaded guilty, receiving probation instead of jail time. Prosecutors have since appealed. Ortega told the Los Angeles Times she declined to testify, fearing retaliation either from Piscatella or other deputies.

She’s Filed a Civil Suit, But She’s Still Afraid

Ortega’s civil suit claims she has suffered lasting emotional trauma from what she calls “predacious conduct.” She is seeking damages and accountability not just from Piscatella but from the county and the sheriff’s department for what she views as systemic failures. In a statement, Ortega said the ordeal left her constantly on edge, worried that the very institution charged with protecting her could instead be used to endanger her. The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department has not publicly commented on the lawsuit.