• Wu threatened the student, who posted the fliers, threatening to “chop [the woman’s] hands off.”
• Wu’s conviction was announced in January 2021, and he was convicted in December 2022.
• The US Attorney’s Office emphasized that cyberstalking can result in up to five years in prison.

US courts have sentenced a Chinese student to nine months in prison for stalking and threatening a female Chinese student who posted pro-democracy fliers on campus.

The fliers, put up at the Berklee College of Music in Boston in late 2022, read: “We want freedom… We want democracy, we want to love, stand with Chinese people.”

In response, Xiaolei Wu said he would “chop [the woman’s] hands off”.

A federal judge has ordered that the 26-year-old undergo deportation after serving his sentence.

“What Mr. Wu did in weaponizing the authoritarian nature of the People’s Republic of China to threaten this woman is incredibly disturbing,” said Jodi Cohen, who leads the FBI’s Boston Division that investigated the case.

During a wave of activism among Chinese people abroad in late October 2022, the pro-democracy fliers were posted. The court heard that Wu, who studied jazz at the university, directly communicated with his victim through email and social media platforms like WeChat and Instagram.

The US Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts stated on Wednesday that he informed her that he had informed Chinese authorities about her actions and that China’s public security agency would “greet” the victim’s family. He also attempted to track her down and publicly posted her email address, “in the hopes that others would abuse the victim online,” authorities said. Wu faced charges in December 2022.

During his conviction in January this year, Acting US Attorney Joshua S. Levy stated that Wu’s “violent threats achieved his goal of instilling fear” in his victims and others who might want to speak out against the Chinese government.

“Our office and the Department of Justice will not tolerate efforts to intimidate and threaten people to suppress their First Amendment rights. Censorship and repression campaigns will never be tolerated here,” he said.

In the US, the charge of cyberstalking can result in a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 (£202,000). The same penalties apply to the charge of interstate transmission of threatening communications.

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