The soft-on-crime policies of Manhattan’s progressive district attorney have once again added to the sense of fear in NYC and left a school on alert after a student alleged of terroristic threats was released without bail.
Overall crime statistics have remained on the rise in the Big Apple with many feeling that Mayor Eric Adams (D) and DA Alvin Bragg (D) have not only failed to address the problem, but exacerbated it. Such was the case Friday when serious charges brought against 21-year-old Din Bajrektarevic were ineligible for bail under New York state law.
According to a criminal complaint, the City College of New York (CCNY) student living in Old Bridge, NJ had allegedly sent a series of threatening and racist text messages to another the day before Thanksgiving that included threats of violence and suggested intent to “shoot up the school.” The New York Post obtained an image of the messages as well as one of Bajrektarevic issued by the college.
NYC student arrested for threatening to 'shoot up' City College — then freed without bail https://t.co/gSp7el1cbN pic.twitter.com/KaHKv65MwH
— New York Post (@nypost) November 29, 2022
The recipient of the messages was not made public, but the content included statements that read, “Stop talking to white peoples,” “Your brains will be left on the f*cking pavement,” “The city will go to war you dumb N****r Monkeys,” and “When I shoot up the school, know who’s to blame.”
Bajrektarevic returned to campus on Nov. 25 where he was arrested after CCNY officials had brought the messages to the attention of law enforcement. Pat Morena, the school’s executive director of public safety explained that his office, “acted on the threat with the NYPD and the FBI, and the student was promptly identified and arrested.”
In coordination with the NYPD, campus police charged the student with making terroristic threats. However, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office only prosecuted on charges of second-degree aggravated harassment as a hate crime, first-degree harassment as a hate crime, and second-degree aggravated harassment.
Regardless of the DA’s discretion, the Post explained that none of the charges presented would have permitted bail under current law, “so he was released on his own recognizance.” The DA’s office did state that a restraining order was issued on Bajrektarevic.
By Monday, CCNY had alerted students to be on the lookout for the student and explained on social media, “Law enforcement has acted on a threat to the campus. An individual has been charged, released, suspended and barred from campus,” adding “There is no reason to believe,” he would, “attempt to come on campus.”
Students were further informed to review an email sent out for greater detail that read in part, “All CCNY Public Safety Officers have been informed that Mr. Bajrektarevic has been suspended and barred from campus, and they are fully prepared to enforce the bar should he attempt to enter the City College campus.”
Please refer to your email for further information. There is no reason to believe the charged, suspended, and barred individual will attempt to come to campus. Nevertheless, please remain alert, and if seen on the CCNY campus:
Call Public Safety: 212-650-7777 or call 911 pic.twitter.com/7WDg33MbPz
— City College of NY (@CityCollegeNY) November 28, 2022
The email also said the school did not “have any indication that Mr. Bajrektarevic is in possession of any firearm or any other deadly weapon,” but suggested students, “Remain alert, and should you encounter Mr. Bajrektarevic on the City College campus, please immediately notify CCNY Public Safety,” and a phone number was provided.
Statistics have shown that overall crime has climbed by more than 30 percent in 2022 over the previous year in New York City.
The student could not be reached by the Post for comment and his defense attorney did not return a request for comment at the time of publication. Bajrektarevic is expected in court on Jan. 11, 2023.
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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