Xiaolei Wu, a Chinese student who had been serving a nine-month prison sentence for threatening pro-democracy activists in Boston, received an early release on September 16 and returned to China, according to federal documents obtained by VOA’s Mandarin Service.
U.S. and Chinese officials have not commented publicly on Wu and whether he may have been part of a prisoner swap, but his return to China came about the time that American pastor David Lin was released and returned to the United States after serving 18 years in prison.
Documents from the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts and the U.S. Justice Department confirm Wu's release and that President Joe Biden signed a clemency document on September 12, reducing Wu's total sentence to time served, saying that it was in the "national interest" of the United States for him not to serve his full sentence.
The pardon document states that Wu began serving his sentence on June 7. The conditions for the commutation said Wu must leave the United States and never again set foot on U.S. soil and territories, and that he must not commit any crimes against the U.S. or violate U.S. laws again.
Wu, a former student of Berklee College of Music, was found guilty in January of stalking and threatening a pro-democracy activist in Boston in fall 2022. On April 24, Wu was sentenced to nine months in prison and three years of supervised release.
Prosecutors said Wu, 26, threatened to chop off the hands of a Chinese pro-democracy activist known as "Zooey," a pseudonym that the Berklee student has used to avoid retaliation. Wu threatened to report Zooey’s family to Chinese police and asked others to find out where she lived. He also published Zooey’s email address.
Two of Zooey's friends told VOA Mandarin on Wednesday that Zooey learned from prosecutors in September that Wu had been released and reciprocally exchanged for Lin.
The two friends, who requested anonymity, citing security concerns, said Zooey was shocked and puzzled by this and worried about her safety.
One of Zooey's friends said he received a threatening message from Wu on Instagram a few days ago.
The message said: "Do you really think that I won't be able to find you if you wear a mask and change your voice on Voice of America?"
Another friend said that Wu recently posted a video of himself playing guitar on WeChat, China’s biggest social media platform. The location indicated it was published in Beijing.
Zhou Fengsuo, a former student leader during the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy movement in China and co-founder of the NGO Humanitarian China, told VOA Mandarin in a phone interview that while Wu had gotten off easy, his case may serve as a deterrent against future similar cases.
“This is a very important case. We have observed that the Chinese pro-CCP nationalists have been restrained a lot on American campuses,” Zhou said.
“I have participated in activities in many American universities this year and have not encountered any of these people. I believe this has a lot to do with Wu’s conviction. Of course, his early release is not the result we want to see."
Zhou also said that if Wu's release is indeed part of an exchange for David Lin, it could mean that Wu has certain connections in China.
He also told VOA Mandarin the swap is still beneficial.
"Pastor David Lin was detained in China for a very long time, so it is still very precious to exchange for his return," Zhou said.
VOA was unable to independently confirm whether Wu's early release was directly related to the release of Lin.
VOA contacted the U.S. State Department and the Massachusetts U.S. Attorney's Office in charge of Wu's case but has yet to receive a response. The White House declined to comment to VOA.
