Taylor Swift’s alleged stalker David Crowe arrested again after dumpster diving outside her NYC apartment — just minutes after being released without bail
A Seattle man caught twice in three days lurking outside Taylor Swift’s apartment found himself back in cuffs Wednesday when he returned to the mega-star’s apartment –less than an hour after being cut loose by a Manhattan judge.
David Crowe, 33, was again taken into custody after being spotted rummaging through a dumpster across the street from Swift’s Tribeca home at around 1:35 p.m., police sources said.
It seems he booked it from his Manhattan Criminal Court arraignment to her apartment — with exclusive photos showing the creepy lurker peering into the dumpster from multiple angles.
Prosecutors revealed during the hearing that Crowe had staked out Swift’s apartment 30 times over the past two months.
“I just saw him digging through this dumpster, taking out some blankets and then he just went and sat down on the loading dock a few doors down [from Swift’s apartment],” a neighbor said Wednesday afternoon, adding they were “terrified” when they noticed the prowler at it again.
“My heart dropped,” the neighbor said. “I just thought, ‘Oh my god, I can’t believe this guy is back! I just want to never see this person again. I hope he gets the help he needs but he needs to leave our little street alone.”
The neighbor, who didn’t wish to be identified, said she saw Crowe over the weekend — when he was detained Saturday night for lurking around Swift’s door, and sprung without charges.
“He’s been around since Christmas time,” the neighbor said. “The first couple times we saw him, he was sleeping on our stoop or the neighbor’s stoop smoking constantly.”
Police sources said that even though cops took Crowe into custody, they didn’t have a complainant file a report or proof that he actually committed a crime — which led to his release.
But Crowe was spotted outside the “Bad Blood” singer’s home again Monday night, and this time hit with charges of stalking in the fourth-degree, a misdemeanor, and two counts of harassment.
The charges weren’t eligible for bail, so prosecutors said they instead requested the highest possible tier and level of supervised release at his arraignment Wednesday.
But sources and legal experts were surprised that Crowe wasn’t hit with higher charges the second time he was taken into custody, which would have allowed Judge Marisol Martinez Alonso to hold him on bail.
Still, “New York’s felony stalking laws require showing repetitive convictions or use of a weapon against the victim, a very high bar,” said criminal defense attorney Jason Goldman.
“At the same time, By having such strict requirements, our law almost waits for a potentially deadly crime to be carried out as opposed to an effective ‘preventative anti-stalking’ statute which would make Taylor and others much safer,” Goldman added.
“Mr. Crowe is precisely the type of person and type of scenario that stalking laws are made for so we don’t have another Rebecca Schaeffer on our hands,” referring to the California actress shot dead by her stalker in 1989.
Assistant District Attorney Harriet Jiranek said Crowe had visited the “Shake It Off” singer’s home on several occasions — when he tried to shake neighbors on Swift’s whereabouts.
“He constantly states he is there to see Taylor Swift,” Jiranek said. “He has said this to neighbors and asked where she is.”
The burly Crowe, who hulked over a table in a beige sweatshirt that read “Love Doesn’t Just Sit There Like A Stone” on the back, had been warned 10 times to leave Swift’s home by the building’s custodian — but that didn’t stop him from visiting 30 times between Nov. 25 and Jan. 22, according to a criminal complaint.
On several occasions, Crowe told a security guard that he was there to talk to Swift. And each time, the guard told him to leave the building and the area alone, the complaint said.
At least once, the guard asked his name — to which he replied, “David Crowe,” the complaint said.
He was busted by police when a member of Swift’s security team notified police officers who were patrolling the area Monday, according to law enforcement sources.
The complaint was backdated to Nov. 25. 2023, which helps officers outline Crowe’s pattern of alleged harassment, sources told The Post. Crowe had been on cops’ radar since at least Thanksgiving, sources added.
Crowe has been described as emotionally disturbed, sources said — but that also wasn’t enough to keep him behind bars.
“New York has had a catch and release program for years, people only notice now because it’s Taylor Swift,” one officer told The Post.
Meanwhile, Swift was busy cheering on boyfriend and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce in their 27-24 win at the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park on Sunday to reach the AFC Championship.
Crowe’s attorney, Cara Mazor, said Crowe currently attends school in Seattle and has one prior misdemeanor conviction.
Crowe didn’t respond when asked why he’s obsessed with the “You Belong With Me” singer following the court hearing.
Cops later found him acting “disorderly” at Franklin and Hudson streets and brought him to the 1st Precinct stationhouse, the NYPD said.
Crowe was charged with four counts of criminal contempt, likely for violating a restraining order Alonso had put in place at the hearing after hearing arguments from prosecutors that it would “ensure Ms. Swift’s safety.”
He’s due back in court on March 12 on the other charges.
It’s unclear whether the new raps will be enough to keep him away from the start’s spot until then.
