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Netflix’s A Toxic Love Story has drawn fresh attention to the shocking scheme orchestrated by Ian Diaz, leaving many wondering where he is today. The documentary unpacks how the former deputy U.S. Marshal and his then-wife Angela Connell (formerly Angela Diaz) aimed to mastermind a web of deception to frame Diaz’s ex-girlfriend Michelle Hadley for stalking and harassment — all in an effort to pressure her into surrendering her share of the Anaheim, California, condo she bought with Diaz.
The plan unraveled, Hadley’s name was cleared and, years later, Diaz is behind bars. Here’s everything Us knows about where Diaz is serving his time and how he got there.
Ian Diaz Is Currently Serving More Than 10 Years in Federal Prison
Diaz is currently incarcerated at FMC Fort Worth. He was arrested in May 2021 — roughly four years after the truth behind the scheme was exposed — and a federal jury convicted him in March 2023 of conspiracy to commit cyberstalking, cyberstalking, perjury and obstruction of a federal matter.
He was sentenced to serve 10 years and one month in prison, and he was dismissed from the U.S. Marshals Service following his conviction.
In January 2025, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed his convictions, closing off one of his primary avenues for challenging the sentence.
Ian Diaz Declined to Appear in ‘A Toxic Love Story’
While Hadley took part in the Netflix documentary, neither Diaz nor Connell chose to participate.
“We did approach Ian. We did write him a letter, and he declined to take part,” director Alexandra Lacey told Netflix’s Tudum.
Lacey added that the filmmakers have no insight into what Diaz’s life is like behind bars.
How Ian Diaz and Michelle Hadley’s Relationship Turned Toxic
Diaz and Hadley met in 2013 on an online dating website and began dating soon after. The pair eventually bought a condo together in a suburb of Anaheim that came with a $500,000 mortgage. Hadley put down the $15,000 down payment.
The couple split in August 2015, and Diaz moved on quickly, marrying Connell — whom he also met through a dating website — in February 2016.
That May, Diaz and Connell claimed they began receiving threatening messages from an anonymous account called “Lilithistruth.” They told police they suspected Hadley was behind them.
On June 24, 2016, Connell called 911 to report that a man had entered her home’s garage and attempted to rape her. Police responded and found her with her shirt torn and red marks on her body. Connell told officers she believed Hadley had organized the attack.
Hadley was arrested that same day and charged with felony counts of attempted forcible rape and stalking. She was facing life in prison.
Ian Diaz and Angela Connell Framed Michelle Hadley to Take Her Portion of the Condo
The story police had been told did not add up. Digital forensic investigators eventually traced the “Lilithistruth” accounts back to Connell — not Hadley. Device logs and IP addresses proved that Hadley had never stalked the couple. Instead, Diaz and Connell had created multiple online accounts in Hadley’s name, posted and responded to “rape fantasy” ads on Craigslist that led several men to their home, and even staged hoax sexual assaults before calling police.
The motive, prosecutors said, was the condo. The couple wanted Hadley to surrender her share of the property she was legally entitled to.
Before officers turned on the couple, Diaz was insistent about Hadley’s guilt. He told police that Hadley “needs to be in f***ing cuffs and in a padded room,” according to an indictment viewed by The Independent.
“At what point does this girl get arrested for sending this s*** and hiring guys off Craigslist to rape [Connell],” Diaz reportedly told the officers.
Hadley spent 88 days in jail before authorities determined she had been framed. Her charges were dropped in January 2017, and Connell was arrested that same month.
Angela Connell Was Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison
Connell pleaded guilty in October 2017 to 10 felony counts, including kidnapping, false imprisonment by menace, fraud or deceit, forgery, possession of a forged check over $950, perjury and grand theft, falsely reporting a crime to a police agency and falsely reporting a crime to a peace officer. She was sentenced to five years in prison and was released in July 2020.
Diaz and Connell have since divorced.
Michelle Hadley Sued the City of Anaheim
Hadley filed a lawsuit against the city of Anaheim and four of its police officers in 2018, arguing that officers had ignored obvious signs that the emails were “clearly doctored” and had charged her with horrendous crimes anyway.
“At its heart, this is a case about the ‘blue wall of silence’ — law enforcement officers and officials enabling fellow officers to violate civilians’ rights. The Anaheim Police Department and its officers abdicated their duties to adhere to investigative norms, instead conspiring to do the bidding of a corrupt federal marshal,” her lawsuit read, per The Independent. “They appear to have willingly become Ian Diaz’s weapon in his tortious campaign to ruin the life of his ex-girlfriend, plaintiff Michelle Hadley.”
Hadley accepted an undisclosed settlement from the city of Anaheim in April 2021 — the same month Diaz was ultimately arrested on federal charges.
Michelle Hadley Reacted to Ian Diaz’s Sentencing
Following Diaz’s sentencing in 2023, Hadley told NBC News that she was “grateful” to the Justice Department for finally prosecuting her ex.
She said the verdict “brought so much peace to my family and restored some of the faith we lost in the justice system as a result of Diaz’s crimes against me.”
For now, Diaz remains at FMC Fort Worth, with his convictions upheld on appeal. A Toxic Love Story premiered on Netflix on July 22, 2026.
This story was compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists.
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