Philly man convicted for stalking, scarring ex in chemical attack

A Philadelphia man who authorities say “permanently disfigured” and “nearly blinded” a former girlfriend in a chemical attack has been convicted by a jury, federal prosecutors said Monday.

Victor Ortiz, 47, is accused of stalking and assaulting the woman as she walked to her office on the morning of May 4, 2022, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania said in a news release.

When the woman, who’s a federal employee, arrived at the building, Ortiz “threw soda ash, a caustic substance, on the victim’s face and torso,”  investigators said.

The public attack, which unfolded in broad daylight, temporarily blinded the woman in her left eye and caused severe pain and scarring on her body.

Investigators also found a GPS device they say Ortiz had attached to the victim’s vehicle so he could monitor and follow her.

During an investigation that followed, Ortiz was filmed attempting to install a second GPS device on her vehicle, about two months after the chemical attack.

The terrifying incident occurred after the two ended a romantic relationship, authorities said. Ortiz, however, refused “to take ‘no’ for [an] answer,” according to U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero.

“Rather than moving on when a relationship ended, he targeted, stalked, and viciously assaulted his ex-partner, causing horrendous physical pain and emotional trauma,” Romero said.

The victim, who hasn’t been identified, was described by The Philadelphia Inquirer as an immigration officer.

Ortiz is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 17. He faces up to 20 years behind bars.