Why would a person attempt to contact a total stranger by phone and on Facebook after seeing their photograph in the newspaper?

On Saturday I attended a social event with my elderly, frail mother. The local newspaper took many photographs and yesterday, a photo of my mother and me was printed in the paper and our names given in the caption.

Last night my mother called to tell me that a strange man had called her home attempting to reach me and she assumed he saw my photograph in the paper. I should note that my phone number is unlisted, but my mother’s is not and we share the same distinctive last name. When she asked the man’s name, he replied “James”, but stammered and seemed unsure and this made her suspicious. She asked for his last name and he was silent. She told him she would not give him any information about me if he did not provide a full name and he simply said “I’m sorry” and then remained silent, so she hung up and called me to tell me about it.

Shortly after her call, I signed onto Facebook and discovered I had a message from a strange man who was named (pseudonym) “Don Juan Destupid.” His nickname (also a pseudonym) was “Goldmoron.” Obviously it was the same “James” who called my mother’s home. His message simply said “So, you were in the [local paper], huh?” I do not know this man and have never laid eyes on him. He appears to be about 25 to 30 years old. I am 47, but generally am mistaken for about 35. My Facebook profile is mostly hidden to strangers, but does show that I am in a relationship. I am and have very happily been so for nearly a decade.

I ignored the message, blocked “Don Juan” and reset my privacy settings to prevent further messages from people who are not friends or “friends of friends.” I hope this will be the end of the situation, but I remain alarmed that he now knows my elderly mother’s home address, which is listed in the phone book where he got her number. Unless he makes another attempt to contact me, I’m going to drop the matter. I’m actually pretty angry about it, especially since he scared my Mom, but I don’t want to provoke this guy and I may never hear another word.

This incident got me thinking and that leads me to my question, which is: what would motivate a person to do this? Despite rolling it around in my head all day, I can’t think of any way that this could be viewed as a positive or appropriate way to meet someone. Did it not occur to him that bothering a random woman by calling her mother’s home and behaving elusively, followed by sending her a message on Facebook might be viewed as creepy and threatening? Did he think I was going to react to his Facebook message with joy and happiness that I was being hit up by a guy who had just freaked out my Mom? Did he think she wouldn’t tell me about his call? What are your thoughts? What would your reaction be? I truly am curious about the mindset.

[I should add that a quick Google search under his name, nickname and our town revealed his wife’s MySpace page and the existence of his two small children] Nice.