US court sentences Chinese citizen to prison for threatening person who promoted democracy in China

A Chinese citizen who threatened and harassed an individual advocating democracy in China was sentenced to nine months in prison and three years of supervised release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts announced Wednesday.

Xiaolei Wu, 26, who attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, was convicted in January of one count of cyberstalking and one count of interstate transmission of threatening communications, prosecutors said.

CNN has reached out to the Massachusetts Federal Public Defender’s Office, which represents Wu, for comment.

Wu is no longer enrolled as a student at Berklee College of Music, the school told CNN on Wednesday. He was previously suspended from school after the 2022 incident.

CNN previously reported that Wu allegedly sent threatening messages to a person who posted a flyer on or near the university campus supporting Chinese democracy, according to the complaint.

“Post more, I’ll cut off your hands,” Wu reportedly said on WeChat, a Chinese messaging app.

Charging documents allege that Wu reported the person to the Chinese government and told them that its representatives would “greet” their family members.

Wu also allegedly solicited others to find out where the person lived and publicly posted their email address online in hopes they would be victims of abuse, according to the documents.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy said Wu’s conduct was very serious.

“He exploited fear of potential retaliation by the PRC (People’s Republic of China) government to harass and threaten an innocent individual who posted an innocuous pro-democracy flyer on the Berklee campus,” the statement said. Levy.

“Mr. Wu’s violent threats achieved his goal of instilling fear in his efforts to silence this courageous victim and anyone who might wish to speak out against the PRC government.

“Our office and the Department of Justice will not tolerate efforts to intimidate and threaten people in order to suppress their First Amendment rights. Here, censorship and campaigns of repression will never be tolerated.”

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