NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Hailie Deegan revealed Monday that she is concerned for her personal safety after an obsessed fan sent a death threat targeted at her boyfriend and fellow racer Chase Cabre. The ordeal led to Deegan skipping a race last weekend in Florida and has also affected her at-track status for Thursday night's Truck race at Martinsville Speedway.
In a video posted to her YouTube account, Deegan shared that her race team had received an eight-page letter from the individual in question, in which he stated that he had been dating Deegan for multiple months and that Deegan was his soulmate. The individual in question, Deegan claims, is the victim of a catfishing scheme by a fake Deegan account on social media -- an account which also made false claims about Cabre (including that Deegan's relationship with him is fake and that her boyfriend abuses her).
Deegan, 20, said she has dealt with stalkers in the past, but this incident is particularly frightening because the individual lives near her home and race shop. Deegan noted that the individual recently made posts effectively threatening Cabre's life.
"I would keep kind of and eye on his posts because of the stalker situations I've dealt with in the past. The day that it pretty much changed was a few days ago when he posted stuff saying he was practically going to come kill Chase," Deegan said. "His exact words were not going to kill Chase, but he's going to come and he is going to be the last thing Chase ever sees."
Deegan said that she, Cabre, and her father -- Motocross great Brian Deegan -- have all contacted the individual to state that what the fake account says is not true, but to no avail. She added that she does not want the man arrested for fears that he would only receive a minor punishment for making verbal threats and become more agitated.
In the meantime, a police officer has been stationed outside the couple's home overnight, and the driver has also had contact with the FBI and NASCAR security about the issue. In a statement to NBC News, a NASCAR spokesman shared that they have "have measures in place to increase her safety on and off the track" for Deegan's next Truck Series race on Thursday night.
Deegan, who has three career victories in what is now the ARCA Menards Series West, is in her second full-time season racing Trucks for David Gilliland Racing and has a best career finish of seventh at Gateway. Cabre, a dirt racer, competed against Deegan in the West Series.