On air talent at Channel Nine have been fighting a dark, secret battle.

Melbourne newsreader Peter Hitchener has called in police after being bombarded with death threats from a stalker.

The popular Channel Nine newsreader has been receiving death threats and abuse from a man who blamed Hitchener for losing his job at a rival network.

The torrent of abusive threats, many posted on Twitter, left the 70-year-old fearing for his safety. The newsreader’s concern escalated when his alleged stalker, Albert Park man Tony Pereira, turned up at Channel Nine’s Docklands studios.

Detectives arrested Tony Pereira, 48, at his home in Melbourne on Wednesday.

Pereira is a former employee at rival Channel 7 and he believed Hitchener was partially responsible for his dismissal, according to the Herald Sun. The circumstances surrounding his dismissal are ­unknown.

Pereira has been charged with stalking, using a carriage service to harass, using a carriage service to menace and breach of a court order.

Couldn’t wait for today’s launch of @Active_April so I got started early! Hope you’ll join the initiative – it’s fun & free.. get active! pic.twitter.com/QpEdwnhab4

— Peter Hitchener (@phitchener9) February 9, 2017

The 48-year-old appeared in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday where he was granted bail to undergo psychiatric assessment.

According to the Herald Sun, Pereira may have targeted other television presenters and executives, including Today show host Lisa Wilkinson.

The accused stalker also appears to have sent angry messages to TV news anchors, reporters and even Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

In one recent post, Pereira said: “If Colleagues like Lisa Wilkinson won’t co-operate with police don’t b*tch if staff get hurt or injured.”

Earlier this month, he tweeted: “I will eventually put one of these f—— animals in hospital and then throw myself at the mercy of the courts.”

Pereira has also goaded police through his Twitter account, tweeting: “You can’t monitor me all the time.”

A police source told the Herald Sun, that Pereira was a serial pest to high-profile television personalities and that authorities had been made aware of his menacing behaviour.