On Monday, August 21, 2023, the actress Drew Barrymore attended an event in New York City to celebrate her friend and singer Renee Rapp’s new music. During the event, an audience member, Chad Michael Busto, suddenly rushed the stage. Barrymore’s security crew acted swiftly and stopped the man from harming Barrymore. Despite Busto’s release after being momentarily detained, the detective division initiated an investigation to follow-up on his initial restraint. According to Deadline, Busto was detained briefly on August 24.
In a viral video, Busto yelled, “Drew Barrymore! I’m Chad Michael Busto. You know who I am. I need to see you at some point while you’re in New York.” Immediately after, Rapp was startled by him and instinctively covered Barrymore with her arm as they both stood up to flee. Shortly after he was escorted out of the event, Barrymore and Rapp returned, and with a witty reply in response to Rapp’s defensiveness, Barrymore said, “I have a new definition of your sexiness. It’s that level of protectiveness.”
According to Enews, Barrymore and Rapp were distraught because Busto’s intentions were unknown. “I feel like even to say it out loud feels more vulnerable and susceptible, or I feel like to even say it out loud it sounds so silly,” Rapp said on the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast. “I really was so weirded out by that whole thing”
According to Deadline, the stalker from Washington D.C was finally detained two days later when police received a report of a “suspicious person riding a bicycle up peoples’ driveways.” He knocked on strangers’ doors asking them where Drew Barrymore resided. He found her home, but she was not present at the time. The 911 call was received in Sagaponack, a town on Long Island.
So, who is Chad Michael Busto? According to Deadline, he had been already charged with stalking, and a wanted flier was “distributed to neighboring agencies” in order to find him. According to ABCNews, Busto did not show up to be fitted for a GPS monitor prior to seeing Barrymore live. Judge Karen Sartain ordered and signed a bench warrant. According to Deadline, he has been arrested several times in Georgia, Minnesota, Florida, and Wisconsin for disorderly conduct and trespassing. In 2009, he allegedly broke into a Greyhound bus station.
Barrymore wasn’t the only victim being harrassed by Busto. He reportedly joined a “fan forum” for Amber Heard. Shortly after, he was banned due to sexual harassment, threats, and stalking. According to RadarNews, he expressed his infatuation with Heard in a Walmart. Shoppers were bewildered as he said, “Good evening everybody at Walmart. If I can have your attention please, it’s my personal belief that we are probably in the apocalypse: the end times. My name is Chad Michael Busto and we are recording this. So, Amber Heard … she’s a famous actress. I have proposed to her for marriage.” The video went viral. Only after the incident with Barrymore did people begin raising concerns online.
Law enforcement continues to investigate Busto.
