(The Center Square) – Federal authorities have arrested eight people connected to the University of Michigan after a federal grand jury indicted them for threatening university officials, businesses and the Jewish Federation.
The indictment alleges the defendants, all young adults now in their 20s, carried out a series of “actions” after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel, seeking to pressure the University of Michigan and other entities to sever ties with Israel and organizations they believed supported Israel.
According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Eastern District of Michigan, the defendants publicly demanded that the university make a “full and complete divestment” from Israel and businesses supporting Israel. After becoming dissatisfied with the university's response, they allegedly organized what they called “autonomous actions” against university officials and other targets in 2024 and 2025.
U.S. Attorney Jerome Gorgon said the alleged conduct crossed the line from free speech protests into criminal intimidation.
“In America, we rule by law not by fear,” Gorgon said. “These alleged threats and attempts to terrorize government officials, businesses, and the Jewish Federation are anti-American. We will counter intimidation with justice.”
According to the indictment, members of the group researched personal information about targeted individuals, including home addresses, family members and business connections. Prosecutors allege the defendants discussed harming victims and their families, including references to poison, bombs and psychological torture.
One alleged exchange cited in the indictment involved discussions about “kill,” "torment," and "terrorize" targets and their families. Prosecutors also allege one defendant said an entire family was on a "hit list."
The defendants are accused of targeting homes and businesses with spray-painted messages, threats and symbols, including phrases such as "INTIFADA" and "DIVEST NOW." Prosecutors allege they left threatening notes, caulked doors shut, locked entryways with bicycle locks, broke windows and threw jars containing butyric acid and dye into homes.
FBI Detroit Special Agent in Charge Jennifer Runyan said the defendants allegedly carried out the attacks while attempting to conceal their identities.
“In the dead of night, masked and hooded defendants allegedly threw noxious chemicals through the windows of families' homes and taped demand letters to their front doors,” Runyan said. “At every step they attempted to cover their tracks and delete evidence of their crimes.”
Runyan added that those who engage in attacks like these "should expect to be held fully accountable under federal law.”
Among the alleged targets was the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit. Prosecutors say the organization’s building was vandalized on Oct. 7, 2024, the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attacks in Israel.
FBI Director Kash Patel called the incidents a “coordinated campaign of violent, criminal acts."
Two suspects are charged with witness intimidation.
Prosecutors allege the two confronted a University of Michigan student they believed was cooperating with federal investigators after discussing ways to prevent the student from sharing information with authorities. A separate charge also accuses another defendant of destroying evidence after law enforcement sought to execute a search warrant at his home.
The alleged crimes have prison sentences ranging between five and 20 years and fines of up to $250,000.
Elyse Apel, a graduate of Hillsdale College, is a reporter for The Center Square covering Minnesota and Michigan. Her work has appeared in a range of national outlets, including the Washington Examiner, The American Spectator, and The Daily Wire.
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