Man is accused of stalking Hilary Duff

A Russian national who allegedly came to Los Angeles for the sole purpose of having a romantic relationship with “tween queen” Hilary Duff has been arrested on suspicion of menacing the actress, authorities said.

Manhattan Beach police officials confirmed Monday that Maksim Myaskovskiy, 18, was arrested Friday on suspicion of felony stalking and making criminal threats against the actress-singer, best known as the star of the long-running Disney Channel show “Lizzie McGuire.”

Myaskovskiy, who was arrested at a hotel in the 1700 block of Sepulveda Boulevard, was being held at the Manhattan Beach jail in lieu of $200,000 bail.

Duff and her family had sought an order of protection Oct. 12 against Myaskovskiy. He is scheduled to be arraigned today in a Torrance courtroom.

Court documents seeking the order allege that Myaskovskiy tried to make contact with Duff by visiting her neighborhood, her mother’s home and the neighborhood of her boyfriend, Joel Madden, the lead singer of the band Good Charlotte.

Myaskovskiy “apparently came to Los Angeles a little over two years ago for the sole purpose of meeting and becoming romantically involved” with Duff, according to court papers seeking the order. “He has admitted to being ‘obsessed’ with her, has stated his intention of purchasing a weapon, and has threatened to kill himself and to engage in dramatic actions to get her attention ... and that Joel Madden stands in their way.”

Also mentioned in the court papers is David Joseph Klein, 50, a self-described celebrity photographer. In the documents, attorneys for Duff assert that Myaskovskiy was Klein’s roommate. Klein disputes that and has not been charged with any crime.

Court documents allege that Klein never tried to contact authorities or take any actions to stop Myaskovskiy, and suggest that Klein may have used the threats to make contact with Duff or her family to “obtain something of value from Hilary.”

In a telephone interview Monday, Klein flatly disagreed with the way he had been characterized by Duff’s attorneys in court papers, saying he had “been stabbed in the back.”

“I was trying to help warn them” about Myaskovskiy, Klein said. “They turn around and make it like I’m the guilty person.”

Klein said he met Myaskovskiy in July at a fast-food restaurant after Myaskovskiy moved to Los Angeles from New York, where he had lived since childhood.

Klein said he tried to get Myaskovskiy treatment for mental illness and allowed him to periodically stay at his Los Angeles apartment. But he denied that Myaskovskiy was his roommate.

According to the court papers, Klein and Myaskovskiy showed up at a concert Sept. 30 at the Avalon club in Hollywood, where Madden’s band was performing.

The documents allege that Klein made threatening comments to a member of Madden’s security detail near the VIP entrance about “the bad things that would happen to Hilary if Max [Myaskovskiy] is not able to meet her.”

Both men reportedly were handcuffed, questioned and later released. Then about a week later, Myaskovskiy allegedly contacted the owner of a market frequented by Madden.

Klein said the whole thing had been blown out of proportion and that Myaskovskiy simply wanted an autograph from Duff.

“They took his dream away and essentially killed this kid,” Klein said.

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andrew.blankstein@latimes.com