" loading="" class="lazyload size-article_feature" data-sizes="auto" data-src="" src="https://www.mercurynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/LDN-L-THREAT-0202-BDC1-1.jpg?w=511"/>
Native police are exterior the condominium constructing in Boulder, Colorado, on Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, the place Matthew Harris is barricaded. Harris, a former UCLA postdoctoral scholar and lecturer who's accused of constructing threats to the Westwood campus’ philosophy division, was ultimately taken into custody (Picture by Cliff Grassmick/Boulder Every day Digital camera)
Threats of a mass capturing from a former philosophy fellow ranting on YouTube and in a manifesto led UCLA directors to shift all courses to distant studying on Tuesday, Feb. 1, with the 31-year-old man arrested by late morning following a standoff in Colorado, authorities mentioned.
Matthew Christopher Harris, 31, was arrested at round 11 a.m. Boulder, Colorado time at his condominium advanced there. Boulder police accused Harris of sending the threatening messages to workers working in UCLA’s philosophy division the day earlier than.
Boulder police Chief Maris Herold mentioned Harris had additionally written threats concentrating on these in Boulder within the 800-page manifesto.
“It was very violent, and it was very disturbing,” she mentioned.
“Upon reviewing elements of the manifesto we recognized 1000's of references to violence, stating issues similar to ‘killing,’ ‘dying,’ ‘homicide,’ ‘shootings,’ ‘bombs,’ ‘schoolyard bloodbath’ and ‘Boulder,’ and phrases like ‘burn and assault Boulder exterior of the college,’ ” Herold mentioned.
The standoff occurred after police in Los Angeles tracked Harris to Colorado following his sending of the manifesto and hyperlinks to YouTube to the UCLA division the place he used to function a post-doctoral fellow, authorities mentioned.
Talking at Tuesday’s Police Fee assembly at round 9:30 a.m., LAPD Chief Michel Moore was the primary native official to establish the place Harris was believed to be dwelling. He mentioned that the FBI was closing in on Harris, with out noting that the standoff had already begun.
“At this level, we imagine the campus is protected,” Moore mentioned.
By then, UCLA officers had already canceled in-person courses. Lower than an hour after the arrest of Harris, the college mentioned in a press release that courses would resume as regular on Wednesday.
On Monday, the workers within the UCLA philosophy division emailed present college students concerning the threats they acquired that day. In that e-mail, which college students posted parts of to social media, the workers mentioned Harris despatched them hyperlinks to a video referred to as “UCLA Philosophy Mass Taking pictures,” in addition to hyperlinks to his prolonged writings, which included particular threats to Dodd Corridor on campus.
“For these new this 12 months to the division, this particular person was a postdoc whose extremely erratic conduct and threatening communications and on-line exercise precipitated nice misery final spring,” the workers wrote within the e-mail. “He had left the realm as of June final 12 months. …At this time he despatched a barrage of threatening e-mail to many within the division, and plenty of others.”
Within the movies obtained by media members earlier than YouTube appeared to take down his account, Harris apparently ranted whereas displaying footage of video video games and up to date mass shootings, together with the assault on concert-goers on the Route 91 Harvest musical competition in Las Vegas in 2017 when 60 have been killed and 850-plus injured.
In an handle to reporters close to the location of the standoff Tuesday morning, Boulder County District Legal professional Michael Dougherty mentioned Harris had tried to purchase a handgun in one other Colorado county in November.
Harris was denied. Dougherty mentioned he believed Harris was unable to buy the gun due to a safety order filed in opposition to him in California.
That restraining order in opposition to Harris was granted to a College of California, Irvine philosophy professor in 2021. Courtroom paperwork present Harris despatched emails to his mom threatening to “hunt” and “put bullets in her cranium,” referring to the professor. Harris’ mom then alerted her.
“At this time was a scary day for the individuals of Boulder,” Dougherty mentioned.
After his arrest, the district legal professional mentioned, Harris was dealing with a number of state prices. A U.S. legal professional in Colorado mentioned Harris might face federal prices as properly.
The one-day return to distant courses got here as the college was already roiled by protests from college students over whether or not to proceed providing them as an choice throughout the pandemic.
Dozens of scholars staged a sit-in Monday to demand the college permit them to decide on whether or not to point out as much as class in particular person or to proceed studying from dwelling, in line with the Every day Bruin.
The Related Press, Metropolis Information Service and Mitchell Byars and Annie Mehl, workers writers with the Every day Digital camera in Boulder, contributed to this report.