U of Rochester announces 4 student arrests for involvement in 'Wanted' posters targeting pro-Israel staff

The University of Rochester has announced that four individuals have been arrested in connection with the recent appearance of “Wanted” posters on campus that targeted pro-Israel faculty and staff.

On Nov. 10, the posters were discovered on Rochester’s campus and accused faculty of “ethnic cleansing” and targeted their alleged connections to Israel.

On Tuesday, Department of Public Safety Associate Vice President Quchee Collins provided an update to the ongoing investigation.

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”Today, we began the arrests of four individuals on felony charges for their alleged involvement in distributing the antisemitic ‘Wanted’ posters around River Campus, and an additional fifth person continues to be investigated,” Collins writes. “While I regret that this deeply disturbing incident took place on our campus, I am incredibly satisfied that through a thorough investigation we were able to identify those who are allegedly responsible and hold them accountable for the deliberate and deplorable actions targeted toward members of our University community, including members of our Jewish population.”

Collins also identifies the four individuals as university students who are charged with crimes of felony criminal mischief, explaining that their actions are criminal and not just disciplinary.

Collins also notes that at the moment, the “Wanted” posters do not appear to constitute a state or federal hate crime.

”It’s our current understanding that these actions do not meet the legal threshold for being a hate crime, according to the feedback we received from various law enforcement authorities who ultimately make the final determination,” he writes. “This status could possibly change over the course of the legal proceedings, however it is important to note that an action can be targeted and biased, as this was, without meeting the legal definition for prosecution as a hate crime.”

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Two days after the posters were discovered, Rochester President Sarah Mangelsdorf sent a university-wide message condemning the posters as “disturbing, divisive and intimidating.”

”[S]everal of those depicted appear to have been targeted because they are members of our Jewish community,” she wrote. “We view this as antisemitism, which will not be tolerated at our University. This isn’t who we are. This goes against everything we stand for and we have an obligation to reject it.”