Chinese student given 9-month prison sentence for harassing person posting democracy leaflets

BOSTON (AP) — The U.S. Attorney’s office says a Chinese former student at Boston’s Berklee College of Music has been sentenced to nine months in prison for stalking and threatening a person who posted a flyer in support of democracy in the Asian country. The leaflet that was posted on campus Oct. 22 read, “Stand with Chinese People.” There were also other messages including, “We Want Freedom” and “We Want Democracy.” Prosecutors say 26-year-old Xiaolei Wu threatened to chop off the hands of the person who posted the flyer, reported their family to China’s public security agency and tried to find out where the person was living. Wu’s lawyer did not respond to a request for comment.