Receiving threats after filing a report requires a clear and timely response. The question is not only whether those words constitute an offense: it matters to understand whether you must report a new fact, how to preserve what you have received, and whether there are tools to reduce the risk of contacts or approaches. A report already submitted does not render subsequent facts irrelevant, nor does it automatically guarantee a protective measure.
I will explain which differences truly matter. We will examine when a threat can be assessed independently, when the repetition of conduct may assume a more serious relevance, and which measures can limit the suspect's contacts. The objective is to help you distinguish immediate safety from the criminal proceedings and not to leave without response elements that could be decisive.
If the danger is current, priority is safety
A concrete and immediate risk must not be handled alone. If the person threatening you is close, attempts to reach you, knows where you are or foresees an imminent assault, contact 112 and move away, when possible, to a safe place. Avoid conciliatory meetings, isolated appointments and responses that could expose you further. Urgent protection does not depend on whether the initial report has already been formalized or whether the proceedings are at an advanced stage.
Subsequent threats must be made known to the authority. A message, a phone call, a visit outside the home or contact through third parties subsequent to the report may constitute a new fact. It is advisable to report with precision the date, time, medium used, words or gestures performed, any persons present and connection with the previous report. Reports and complaints can be presented orally or in writing at the judicial police offices or at the Prosecutor's Office; the injured party may also appoint a defense counsel of trust, as recalled by the guideline of the Prosecutor's Office of Como for injured parties.
There is no need to independently assign a definitive legal name to the fact. Instead, it is useful to make it clear that the conduct is subsequent to the report and that you fear consequences for your safety, that of family members or your freedom of movement. If the fact requires a criminal complaint, it is important to expressly manifest the will that the offender be prosecuted; the precise classification and type of procedibility will then be verified by the proceeding authority.
A threat after the report may be a standalone offense
The threat consists in foreseeing an unfair harm to another person. Article 612 of the criminal code distinguishes ordinary threats from serious ones or those carried out with more alarming modalities. The ordinary form is, as a rule, punishable upon complaint by the injured party; in other situations, the law provides for ex officio prosecution. The text of the article and the relative hypotheses are reported in legislative decree no. 150 of 2022 on Normattiva.
Gravity does not depend solely on the isolated phrase. The content of the threat, the context, the relationship between the people, the way it was transmitted and the facts that make it credible all matter. Saying that harm will be done to someone, showing a weapon, waiting for a person outside of work or recalling personal information known to the offender are different circumstances from a generic offensive expression. The assessment cannot stop at the tone of the message.
Threatening to obtain the withdrawal of the report changes the practical meaning of the conduct. If the purpose is to force you to withdraw a complaint, to modify what you have declared or not to cooperate with the authority, it is not just a matter of adding an episode to the previous one. It may also be necessary to evaluate different offenses from simple threats, because the criminal code punishes anyone who compels others, through violence or threats, to do, tolerate or omit something. For this reason it is important to report not only the words used, but also what you were asked to do or not to do.
The lapse of time can affect the possibility of filing a complaint. For offenses prosecutable upon complaint, the general deadline indicated by institutional information for injured parties is three months from the news of the fact, barring special regulations. However, one should not presume that every threat automatically follows this rule: gravity, modalities, conditions of the injured party and connection with other offenses can affect procedibility. Reporting the fact immediately prevents the deadline issue from overlapping with safety management.
When threats and repeated contacts become stalking
The repetition of threats may integrate the offense of stalking. Article 612-bis of the criminal code requires reiterated conduct of threats or harassment that causes a persistent and serious state of anxiety or fear, a well-founded fear for one's own safety or that of close persons, or forces a change in lifestyle habits. Therefore, it is not enough to count messages: it is necessary to connect the conducts to their concrete consequences.
Changing habits means genuinely modifying one's life out of fear. It may happen, for example, that a person stops using a usual route, avoids going out alone, changes work hours, asks someone to accompany them or gives up frequenting normally safe places. These elements are not secondary details: they help to understand whether the repetition of contacts has affected daily freedom and the sense of security.
For stalking, the complaint deadline is six months. The current discipline of Article 612-bis also provides for specific hypotheses of ex officio prosecution and special rules on the remission of the complaint, especially when repeated threats occur in the most serious forms. The legislation, amended by law no. 181 of 2025 and entered into force on December 17, 2025, can be consulted in the text of law no. 181 of 2025 on Normattiva.
A single episode can be serious even without constituting stalking. It is not necessary to wait for repetition to report a serious threat or to ask that the current danger be considered. Conversely, it is incorrect to automatically call every unwanted message stalking. The distinction serves to represent the facts completely and to identify the remedies actually applicable.
What measures can limit contacts and approaches
The report does not automatically produce a restraining order. Precautionary measures are evaluated in criminal proceedings in light of the severity of circumstantial evidence, protection needs and proportionality to the fact. The injured party can explicitly report the fear of new conduct and document the elements that make it concrete; the public prosecutor can request a measure and the judge decides whether to apply it.
The restraining order can protect both people and frequented places. Article 282-ter of the code of criminal procedure allows the judge to prohibit the defendant from approaching the injured party or places habitually frequented by them. When there are further protection needs, the prohibition can also concern close relatives, cohabitants or persons tied by affection to the injured party. The provision can also prohibit communications by any means, including digital contacts.
Home and work require concrete indications. If people live in the same area, work in the same place or must frequent common spaces, it is not sufficient to request protection formulated in abstract terms. The judge can establish distances, places and modalities compatible with housing or work needs, imposing limitations. For this reason, the address to be protected, schedules, the presence of children, habitually frequented places and episodes that have already occurred assume relevance.
In family relationships, eviction from the family home may be relevant. When the author of the facts is a close relative or a cohabitant, Article 282-bis of the code of criminal procedure provides for a measure different from mere restraining orders: eviction from the family home, possibly accompanied by prescriptions of non-approach. Institutional information from the Prosecutor's Office also recalls that the application of measures under Articles 282-bis and 282-ter is communicated to the injured party and, if appointed, to their defense counsel.
Procedural communications have precise boundaries. In proceedings for crimes committed with violence against the person, the injured party can ask to be informed of release from custody, cessation of a custodial security measure or escape; for certain offenses, including stalking, the law provides for communications that are always due. Articles 90-ter, 282-ter and 282-quater of the code of criminal procedure are recalled in law no. 69 of 2019 published on Normattiva. However, these guarantees are not equivalent to continuous monitoring or generalized notification for every development of the case.
Preserving evidence without altering the context
Original content matters as much as the screenshot. Preserve messages, emails, chats, voice notes, calls, photographs, letters and posts without deleting the conversation. Screenshots are useful if they show date, time, sender and message sequence; when possible, also preserve the file or export of the conversation. Do not crop or modify the material to make it more striking: the context can confirm or refute a meaning.
Non-digital facts must also be described immediately. For an encounter in front of the doorway, an unrecorded phone call or a threat uttered in the presence of other people, promptly note down the place, time, people present, any vehicle used and remembered words. If there are witnesses, there is no need to convince them to take a stand: it is sufficient to indicate who can report what they saw or heard.
The evidence must explain the risk, not just demonstrate contact. A message can gain relevance if it arrives after the report, recalls the proceedings, contains information on your routine or fits into a series of behaviors already reported. It is useful to distinguish what you saw directly from what was reported to you by others. This separation makes the reconstruction clearer and reduces misunderstandings.
What steps to distinguish after a threat
First comes current risk, then the completeness of the report. If you fear an imminent encounter, contact law enforcement immediately. If the fact is not immediate but new, submit an integration to the report already deposited or a new report or complaint, having the connection with the previous proceeding indicated. Ask for a copy or receipt of acceptance of the act and keep the proceeding number if already known.
The request for protection must be linked to verifiable facts. Indicate whether the author knows your address, has violated limits already imposed, has appeared in places you frequent, has involved family members or has used different profiles and numbers. It is not necessary to choose the measure to apply by yourself, but it is important to explicitly state why you fear new conduct and which places or people must be considered in the assessment.
A legal consultation can help organize facts and requests. I can help you distinguish the new episode from the previously reported affair, set up a complete report and understand the communications you receive in the proceedings. This does not replace the immediate intervention of law enforcement when danger is present, but prevents procedural protection from being based on fragmentary information.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to file another report if threats arrive after the first one?
Yes, the subsequent fact should normally be reported. The first report describes what had happened up to that moment; new messages, calls or approaches must enter the proceeding through an integration or a new act. If the offense requires a complaint, it is important to express the will to prosecute the author and not wait unnecessarily.
Can I request a restraining order?
You can report the need for protection, but the measure is not automatic. You must explain which conducts you fear, where they might occur and what elements make the danger concrete. The public prosecutor and the judge evaluate whether the prerequisites exist for a restraining order, a communication ban or, in relevant family cases, eviction from the home.
Does a WhatsApp threat count as evidence?
It can be a relevant piece of evidence. Preserve the complete chat, profile or associated number, date and time, without modifying messages or images. Context is also essential: a phrase must be read together with previous messages, the relationship between the people and the connection with the report already filed.
When do threats become stalking?
It is not enough that they are numerous. For stalking, there must be reiterated conduct of threats or harassment and one of the effects provided for by law: serious and persistent fear, well-founded fear for safety or change of lifestyle habits. Episodes must therefore be described together with the concrete consequences they produced.
Will I receive news if a measure is applied or modified?
Eviction and restraining orders are communicated to the injured party. There are also specific communications for proceedings involving violence against the person and enhanced guarantees for certain crimes, including stalking. It is advisable to correctly indicate your domicile or address and report any possible changes to the authority.
Facing the fact without minimizing it
A threat after a report deserves to be placed in its real context. This does not mean every episode will lead to a precautionary measure, but it does not mean either that it should be absorbed by the previous affair. If you have received intimidating contacts or fear an approach, you can contact me to clarify which elements to bring to the attention of the authority and how to correctly protect your position in the proceedings.