UCF student accused of threatening to kill 3 Jewish students during on-campus event
ORLANDO, Fla. - A student at the University of Central Florida was arrested last week after he allegedly threatened to shoot and kill three Jewish students during a pro-Israel demonstration on campus because "he is tired of seeing (them)", according to police.
Seif Asi, 21, was arrested and charged with three counts of intimidation and credible threat to a person wearing a religious item after the incident that unfolded at the John T. Washington Center on campus on Jan. 23, according to an arrest affidavit from the UCF Police Department.
Students with the "Students Supporting Israel" group on campus were partaking in an approved UCF Office of Student Involvement free-expression event where they were placing small Israeli flags in the ground to honor the Jewish lives lost during the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, the affidavit said.
According to UCF's website, the university "strongly supports" the First Amendment right students have to free speech and free expression.
"Use of outdoor areas of campus for expressive activities is permitted as long as the use does not violate the law and does not materially and substantially disrupt the functioning of the university or infringe upon the rights of others to engage in expressive activities," UCF's policy states.
Asi told police he saw the group of students setting up earlier that day and it made him upset. Instead of engaging, Asi went to the gym on campus to work out, but then told police "he was so upset about it he decided to go back and confront the group after his workout," the affidavit said.
Seif Asi (Photo: Orange County Corrections Department)
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During this confrontation, which lasted a minute or two at around 11:30 a.m., Asi allegedly threatened to shoot three students with a gun.
"I'm going to kill you," Asi admitted to police he said, according to the arrest affidavit.
"You won't be here anymore when I come back and shoot you," the three students told police of what Asi allegedly told them.
Asi also allegedly accused the students of "supporting a genocide, the deaths of Palestinians, and the death of his family members in Palestine," the affidavit said of Asi, who said he is a U.S. citizen but is Palestinian and has family in Palestine.
One of the students immediately located a police officer and told them what Asi allegedly said, and the officer spoke to him about the confrontation.
Asi told police that he "is tired of seeing the Jewish supports on UCF campus and he referred to a pro-Israel march that was conducted last week on UCF campus," the affidavit said, adding that Asi knew the students he's accused of threatening were the same group of students that participated in the march.
Asi also apologized for his behavior and said he knew he shouldn't have made the threat, according to the affidavit.
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"(Asi) said his emotions got the better of him and he requested to go and apologize to the students he threatened," the affidavit said. "(Asi) said he is tired of seeing students on campus defending the killing of Palestinian people."
The three students wished to prosecute Asi, and he was taken into custodyy after police determined he "willfully and maliciously intimidated (people) based on their religion and ethnicity" and he "made a credible threat to victims that were intentionally selected because of the perpetrator's bias against the victims," the affidavit said.
Police also confirmed that Asi did not own a firearm, nor was a firearm found in his possession.
"At UCF, we all have the right to free expression — but violence, threats of violence, and unlawful harassment will not be tolerated," UCF Chief of Police Carl Metzger said in a memo to students, faculty and staff at the time of the incident. "I hope our campus community will continue to come together to condemn hate and violence and to uphold the culture of compassion, understanding, and peace that we have all built together at UCF."