Patrick Dai, a former student of Cornell University, recenty
pleaded guilty to making a threat using interstate communications against the university’s Jewish students.
Dai posted several antisemitic threats of violence against Cornell students in an online discussion forum on October 28 and 29, 2023. These posts were reported to the FBI by the Cornell University Police and an FBI tip-line user on October 30, 2023. Following their investigations, the FBI tracked the associated IP addresses to Dai. In an interview with the FBI, Dai admitted to the posts. This admission led to his
arrest.
The sentencing hearing for Dai is scheduled for August 12, 2024. By the US legal standards, the maximum penalties Dai could face include five years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and a supervised release period of three years after his imprisonment.
Dai’s threats have been identified as part of a larger pattern of
antisemitic rhetoric following the Hamas
attack in Israel on October 7, 2023. The FBI alleged that Dai’s threats obstructed Jewish students’ ability to pursue their education at Cornell, and led some Jewish students to relocate away from campus.
In a
press release, U.S. Attorney Carla Freedman for the Northern District of New York emphasized that the federal felony conviction Dai received underscores the legal system’s commitment to prosecuting violent threats, even those made anonymously online.