Suspect arrested for threat that closed University of Chicago

A police officer on the University of Chicago campus on November 30, 2015

(Image credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images)

last updated 30 November 2015

A University of Illinois at Chicago student was arrested on Monday for allegedly threatening online to shoot 16 white male students at the University of Chicago — one for every shot fired on black 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, who was killed by Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke in October 2014.

When authorities searched the room of the suspect, who was living off campus, no gun was found, a source familiar with the investigation told The Chicago Sun-Times. The FBI has said charges for the threat are pending.

According to a statement by the University of Chicago on Sunday, the campus was on high alert due to the specifics in the threat, which targeted the campus quad at 10 a.m. However, while police monitored the quad Monday morning, there was no incident. University of Chicago President Robert J. Zimmer said that the school had canceled classes due to the "FBI's assessment of this threat and the recent tragic events at other campuses across the country."

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.