I want to report a stalker.

Securing evidence is very important when reporting a stalker.

As in the situation you mentioned, if you have deleted materials that could serve as evidence, much of it can be recovered through digital forensic techniques.

This is because data remains for a certain period even after deletion in smartphones, messenger apps, and the cloud.

Accordingly, digital forensic experts can analyze file systems, log records, server linkage records, etc., to identify some or all of the deleted messages.

However, the important thing here is that the integrity (the recovered data has not been tampered with) and identity (identical to the original) of the recovered evidence must be proven, and it must be collected through legal procedures to be utilized as legal evidence.

Also, note that if individuals arbitrarily attempt to recover deleted files, the data may be damaged.

It is good to entrust the digital forensics to experts, and during the forensic process, you must follow the procedures of preserving the original device, writing a professional analysis report, and submitting evidence.

In addition to text evidence, if you also collect statements from people around you and CCTV footage of the perpetrator actually visiting the victim, it will help during police investigation.

In conclusion, deleted text messages can highly likely be utilized as legal evidence through forensics, and when reporting a stalker, collecting additional evidence through legal procedures in advance is an effective response method.