4 arrested, including 15-year-old, for brutal attack on Chinese PhD student near UW-Madison

June 21, 2022

Four male suspects have been arrested in connection to the vicious assault of a Chinese doctoral student near his University of Wisconsin-Madison campus last week.

The 26-year-old victim, who suffered a bleeding ear and multiple “spots” on his head, detailed his harrowing experience in a Weibo post that was later translated into English.

The victim said he was walking home along University Avenue on the night of June 14 when a group of men surrounded him, struck him in the face, shoved him to the ground and repeatedly punched and kicked him.

“Tonight it’s my turn, and I’m glad it’s my turn and not the turn of anyone else’s, at least I could still take a few punches,” the victim wrote.

The suspects — aged 20, 18, 17 and 15 — were arrested on Saturday. Aside from the June 14 assault, they are believed to have been behind two other similar attacks in the past two weeks, according to Madison police.

On the same night before the Chinese Ph.D. student was assaulted, another Asian student was reportedly attacked by the same group with a banana. Surveillance images released by police show two of the suspects holding bananas.

UW-Madison students organized a Stop Asian Hate rally in response to the latest attack.

“These assaults continue to bubble up, and since that brave Ph.D. student came forward, came with their story, we’ve heard several others come up,” Samantha McCabe, director of International Student Services, told ABC7 Chicago.

However, the latest attack is not being treated as a hate crime. In a statement, Madison Police Department spokesperson Stephanie Fryer said they currently have no information that leads them to believe the incident was racially motivated.

The attacks remain under investigation. Anyone with information related to the attacks is urged to call Madison police at 608-266-6014 or submit a tip at p3tips.com.

Featured Image via Madison Police Department (left) and Weibo (right)

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