Haverford professor Guangtian Ha held pending trial on federal cyberstalking charge

Right · 2Guangtian Ha, a religion professor at Haverford College in Pennsylvania, was ordered held in federal custody pending trial on Tuesday, 13 October 2026, on a federal cyberstalking charge. 1 2 Right · 1FBI agents arrested Ha on 6 October. Ha is accused of threatening and stalking a Jewish Israeli colleague and the colleague's family, and faces up to five years in prison if convicted, according to the Department of Justice as cited by JNS. 1 Right · 1According to the indictment as described by Fox News, the campaign ran from 9 October 2025 to 20 May 2026 through anonymous X accounts, and began with a reply showing an image of the victim's home mailbox. 2

Right · 2Alleged messages include "Jew, get the f--- out of my country," a 27 February 2026 post mocking the victim's security measures ("Blurring your home on google map and installing a security camera next to your mailbox won't help"), a post addressed to the victim about the victim's minor son, and a May post saying "Eliminate the jewish cockroaches. Exterminate the jewish state" and "you shall see a true holocaust." JNS says there were at least 54 threatening messages. 2 1 Right · 1The indictment says the victim and family took security precautions, that some posts contained the home address, and that Ha frequently used VPNs to hide the source of the messages, though authorities traced them to Ha. 2 Right · 1Prosecutors argued for detention on grounds of danger to the family, possible witness intimidation and flight risk. They said a detective's body camera recorded Ha speaking with Ha's wife during the home search, and that an FBI linguist's initial review indicated Ha admitted posting the messages and said they may have to leave the country. 1

Right · 1Prosecutors also said a new anonymous account, created on 23 September and linked to Ha's phone, posted on 5 October, the day before the arrest, "Send your kids out to play" naming the victim. They described this as evidence of renewed attacks. 1 Right · 1Defense attorney Susan Lin, in a filing in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, sought release with monitoring. She cited Ha's lack of a criminal record, said the allegations involve "entirely virtual contact with no physical contact," that Ha owns no gun, and that Ha is a practising Muslim from a family Muslim "for generations" and so not a danger to anyone. 1 Right · 1Haverford President Wendy Raymond said on the day of the arrest that Ha, on sabbatical and not teaching this academic year, was placed on administrative leave and barred from campus. She called the allegations unacceptable and said the college had contacted the alleged victims. The college declined further comment. 2

Right · 1Fox News adds that Ha's earlier public posts were cited in a 2024 Title VI lawsuit against Haverford brought by the Deborah Project on behalf of Jewish students. Its legal director, Lori Lowenthal Marcus, said the messages showed "Zionist" being used as a code word for Jews. 2 Right · 2The accounts differ on some details: JNS calls Ha an assistant professor aged 24, Fox an associate professor. Fox says no legal representatives for Ha had been named publicly, while JNS names Lin. The allegations are unproven. 1 2