I get a feeling that the light is only being shed on the side of the story which makes the "victim" look like an alpha male. All this "message" and "tracing" crap.
I wonder how this "troll" was "traced". Specially trained Twitter-hound? You don't just "trace" people on the internet.
They way I see it (the way the article depicts the situation), they very well knew who could be the troll, and simply threatened the offender:
> There was immediate contrition and categoric statements of regret, with the individual pleading for anonymity due to his expressed personal security concerns
People usually say things like that when there is a presence of an immediate danger to their well-being.
I mean, fair enough, you play with the bull you get the horns. But don't make it look like a triumph of justice accompanied with an honourable act of mercy. You just blackmailed six figures out of a person for sending texts.