Yukai Yang, an international student from China was arrested and charged Thursday with ethnic intimidation, institutional vandalism, and criminal mischief after poisoning Juwan Royal, his black roommate with thallium.
According to The Washington Post, Royal and Yang who were both seniors and chemistry majors had been friends for several years. The first incident occurred in February. One night Royal drank from a water bottle then immediately felt a burning sensation in his mouth. One March 18 Royal fell ill again. He was sitting at his computer before feeling dizzy and passing out. The police were called and when they asked Yang what happened he told them that he thought someone was tampering with liquids in their room.
One week later, their room was vandalized and Royal told the police that he thought Yang had something to do with it. After the investigators matched Yang’s handwriting with the slur written on the desk, he was arrested. When Yang interviewed with the Morning Call, he admitted to buying thallium and other chemicals and mixing them into the food and drinks. He claimed he was only intending to poison himself if he didn’t do well on his upcoming exams.
Yang was also suspended from school and his student visa has been revoked.