Society

US college confirms threat from student

By Tan Yingzi and Chen Xin
Updated: 2010-05-26 07:13

Zhai Tiantian

WASHINGTON / BEIJING - A Chinese graduate student, Zhai Tiantian, who has been arrested and jailed for more than one month in the United States, threatened to "burn to the ground" a campus building, according to officials from the Stevens Institute of Technology, where Zhai was enrolled.

Institute officials, who spoke to China Daily on Monday local time, confirmed Zhai is facing the charge of "terrorism".

Zhai, 27, from Xi'an of Northwest China's Shaanxi province, has become the first Chinese student to face such a charge in the US, his New York City lawyer, Hai Ming, told China Daily.

Zhai's family on Tuesday turned to China's Foreign Ministry for help and are awaiting a response.

The university said doctoral student Zhai, who went to study there in 2003, was first suspended from the school for "disciplinary reasons" in March.

"And on April 15, Zhai was arrested after threatening to burn to the ground a university building. Police determined that the threat was credible and took appropriate action," the university said in a statement to China Daily on Monday.

Zhai, who is currently in the Hudson County Jail in New York state, also allegedly posed threats to one of his professors with whom he had a disagreement.

Related readings:  Arrested Chinese graduate student says: 'I'm no terrorist'

The statement said Zhai's behavior, over a period of months, was deemed to represent a threat to the well-being of others. The suspension has nothing to do with conflict or difference of opinion with academic faculty, as some reports have stated erroneously.

According to the statement, on the day of the incident, Stevens Institute of Technology immediately canceled Zhai's student visa. On the next day, the Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) ordered his arrest. On the third day, INS issued a deportation order.

The university said that in March, they suspended Zhai after a thorough investigation but would not reveal details as "disciplinary actions are confidential".

Zhai's lawyer Hai said on Monday that he is collecting evidence and will meet Zhai in jail this week.

"So far there is little evidence that can prove Zhai was about to commit arson," he said. "Only one professor said he heard Zhai claiming to burn the school building."

According to US laws, people cannot be convicted on the basis of what they think or say, Hai said.

Zhai Tiantian's mother, Wang Xiaojun, sheds tears while she looks at a photo of her son on Saturday at her home in Xi'an, Shaanxi province. [Yangcheng Evening News]

In the past, Hai has dealt with many similar cases involving conflicts between Chinese students and their professors in US universities.

"But this is the first time that a Chinese student has been charged with 'terrorism'," he said.

The lawyer said he has sought help from some congressmen from New York state who have agreed to write to relevant departments.

"Those congressmen agree that we should avoid overusing claims of terrorism," he said.

A US-based Chinese newspaper reported that on April 15, Zhai had a verbal dispute with his professor, Rafael Collazo, over his academic work, but no physical altercation took place.

The professor has claimed that Zhai said some threatening things to him so he reported Zhai to the school's authorities, saying that Zhai posed a potential threat to the school.

The outcome of the criminal case will ultimately determine whether Zhai will be sent back to China. If convicted, Zhai might not be allowed to stay in the US.

"His mother and I would be happy if our son comes back to China," said Zhai Taishan, who has not seen his son for eight years.