A former Cornell University student was sentenced on Monday to 21 months in federal prison for disseminating threats to murder Jewish students in the wake of the October 7 massacre in southern Israel.
Patrick Dai, a departed junior at the Ivy Leage institution, entered guilty pleas related to several menacing and antisemitic statements he reportedly made on an online discussion forum in late October.
Prosecutors contend that on two separate occasions, the 22-year-old from Pittsford, New York, declared that he was going to partake in a mass shooting at a kosher dining hall on campus, detonate an explosive device at the Cornell Jewish Center, and commit individual acts of violence towards any Jews he encountered in public.
Shortly before Dai made his incendiary comments, Cornell placed one of their history professors, Russell Rickford, on leave for describing the Hamas rampage on October 7 as being “exhilarating” and “energizing.”
New York’s Governor, Kathy Hochul, and the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, Doug Emhoff, visited the school after the incident to show support for the students.
Related Story: Ivy League Professor Calls Hamas Terrorist Attacks ‘Exhilarating’ and ‘Energizing’ at Campus Rally
