FRESNO, Calif. - A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment today charging D'Andre Davis, 39, formerly of Stockton, and Nicole Nowak, 31, of Las Vegas, Nevada, with conspiracy to extort money by means of threatening communications and stalking. The indictment also charges Davis with a separate count of stalking the same victim, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

According to court documents, in July 2021, Davis contacted a victim in Washington state through Instagram and Facebook messages. Although the victim initially engaged in a consensual online relationship with Davis, the victim attempted to end the relationship when Davis began to repeatedly and aggressively demand money. Davis was serving a sentence in a California state prison at the time and used a combination of contraband cellphones and an inmate telephone and messaging service to contact the victim. In May 2024, Nowak assisted Davis, and they threatened to send to the victim's business associates, clients, family members, and friends compromising images that the victim had shared with Davis unless the victim continued to send money. The victim sent more than $35,000 to Davis and Nowak before contacting the FBI.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Office of Internal Affairs conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gappa is prosecuting the case.

A federal magistrate judge ordered Nowak detained as a danger to the community on June 16, 2026. Davis is currently serving a prison sentence at Kern Valley State Prison. Both defendants will appear before a federal magistrate judge in Fresno on a date to be determined.

If convicted of the conspiracy charge, Davis and Nowak face a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If convicted of the stalking charge, Davis faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.