Patrick Dai, 21, of Pittsford, Monroe County, New York, United States is a junior at Cornell University in Ithaca, Tompkins County, New York. In 2020, he entered the university to pursue a bachelor’s degree in engineering.
The university has a dining hall called 104 West, which caters mostly to Kosher diets. It is located next to the Cornell Jewish Center, which provides residences for the university’s students.
From October 18-29, 2023, Dai allegedly posted threatening messages to the university’s section of the online discussion site Greekrank. In one of his posts, he allegedly wrote, “gonna shoot up 104 west”.
In another post, Dai allegedly threatened to behead any Jewish babies. He allegedly threatened to rape and throw off a cliff any Jewish females, “stab” and “slit the throat” of any Jewish males he sees on campus and “bring an assault rifle to campus and shoot all” Jews.
Investigators traced the threatening messages to the Dai’s internet protocol address. Before 6:00 p.m. on October 31, 2023, Federal Bureau of Investigation agents raided his apartment in Ithaca with the help of the Cornell University Police Department and the Ithaca Police Department and arrested him.
After receiving Miranda warnings, Dai admitted that he was the person who used the internet to post the threatening messages. On November 1, 2023, he will make his initial appearance in federal court in Syracuse, Onondaga County, New York before a U.S. Magistrate Judge.
Dai was charged with posting threats to kill or injure another using interstate communications. The charge carries a maximum term of five years in prison, a term of supervised release of up to three years and a fine of up to $250,000.
CONAN Daily 