Four accused in alleged anti-Israel University of Michigan threat case released on bond
Eight college-aged activists face federal charges for allegedly conspiring to threaten University of Michigan leaders over refusal to divest from Israel.
A group of college-aged activists were released on bond after they were charged earlier this week with engaging in a conspiracy to threaten University of Michigan leaders over their refusal to divest from Israel.
Four of the eight defendants — Zainab Hakim, 23; Paige Feyock, 26; Jonathan Zou, 22; and Colin Weger, 24 — appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Anthony Patti on Friday.
This came after FBI Director Kash Patel announced seven arrests in connection with the case.
After Hakim, Feyock, Zou and Weger entered not guilty pleas, Patti ordered them to be released on bond, according to court records reviewed by Fox News Digital.
They will have to surrender their passports, have no contact with any of the alleged victims or co-defendants and submit to GPS monitoring and travel restrictions, CBS News reported.
Throughout the hearing, prosecutors argued that the defendants should stay in jail because they are a flight risk and a danger to the community.
The judge emphasized free speech concerns, given how reliant the case is on social media posts made by the accused, according to CBS News.
Shortly after Hamas launched the Oct. 7 attacks in 2023, the suspects allegedly began coordinating with each other to intimidate university leaders, law enforcement and businesses they believed were financially supporting Israel, according to a federal indictment.
The U.S Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Michigan released a photo showing one such instance of intimidation, when in May 2024, students put fake corpses wrapped in sheets outside the home of University of Michigan Regent Sarah Hubbard.
Hubbard welcomed charges being brought, saying in a statement that she was "very appreciative of the tireless work" of law enforcement, according to The Associated Press.
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Prosecutors say the defendants defaced other homes and businesses with messages such as "Free Palestine," "Divest Now," and "Intifada." These phrases were spray painted on the campus’ Jewish Federation Building on the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks.
"The defendants also left demand notes containing additional threats, caulked doors shut, bike-locked entryways, broke windows, and threw glass jars filled with butyric acid and dye into the homes. The defendants took photographs of the destruction and posted the photos online," according to the U.S Attorney’s Office.
The indictment alleged that the co-conspirators spent months stalking so-called "targets" and discussing how they could use "poison, bombs and psychological torture" to harm them.
On May 21, 2024, Feyock and Ahmet Korkaya, another defendant in the case, allegedly agreed to kill, torment and terrorize their targets and their families, according to the indictment.
Korkaya allegedly said in text messages that the "entire family" of one target was on his "hit list," prosecutors said.
A medical student at the time, Korkaya allegedly told Feyock that he would be the "dirtiest f------ doctor ever" and slowly "poison" one of the people on his hit list.
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Korkaya appeared in federal court in Wisconsin earlier this week, and he is scheduled to appear for a detention hearing on Tuesday.
The most serious charge in the indictment, witness intimidation, was levied against Hakim and Feyock. The pair allegedly threatened someone in their circle who they believed might have been talking to law enforcement about their activities. If convicted, they face a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and a $250,000 fine.
Also named in the indictment were Jonathan Hongru Zou, 22, and Alexander Sepulveda, 23, who were accused of throwing two glass jars filled with an unknown blue substance through the window of the home of the university’s provost, Laurie McCauley. They also allegedly spray painted the home with inverted red triangles and phrases including "Divest" and "Free Palestine."
According to a report from the Detroit Free Press, this incident occurred in March 2025.
Authorities attempted to execute a search warrant at Sepulveda’s home in April 2025. Sepulveda was warned of this by an unknown individual on an encrypted group chat, prompting him to erase all the data on his phone and laptop, according to the U.S Attorney’s Office.
Sepulveda will appear for a bond hearing on Monday at a federal court in Detroit.
Those named in the indictment charged with conspiracy to transmit a threat or destruction of property to prevent seizure face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
