UW–Madison Police Department

UWPD Threats Suspect Arrested by Federal Authorities in Detroit

  • Incident date: March 10, 2023, 12:00 am
  • Incident type: Information
  • Location/address: UW-Madison Police Department

Read Chancellor Mnookin’s statement about this and another recent threat incident »

On Friday, March 10, 2023, at the request of the University of Wisconsin Police Department (UWPD), a former UW-Madison graduate student was detained by federal law enforcement officials at the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport after attempting to re-enter the United States from Europe. The former student, Arvin Mathur, who left the university in 2021, allegedly made online threats against specific members of the UW-Madison community.

Mathur made an initial appearance in federal court on Saturday, March 11 and is being held in Detroit.

UWPD, which has been working with the affected individuals and actively monitoring the situation, alerted federal law enforcement officials once they received indication Mathur intended to travel back to the U.S.

Threats are taken extremely seriously by the university, UWPD, and their local, state, and federal law enforcement partners. UWPD has a long-established process and program designed to share information and regularly works with other agencies to track, address and act regarding threats to students, faculty and staff of UW-Madison.

In this process for threat assessment and response, everyone can play a positive role in helping keep students, employees, and the rest of our community safe. In this case and in recent weeks, the quick action taken by law enforcement, in partnership with members of the campus community, demonstrates the presence and effectiveness of processes designed to protect public safety.

UWPD offers a number of resources for preparing for and responding to threats, including training.

The university encourages anyone affected to seek support and community in ways that feel right to them:

Anyone with safety concerns on campus can:

  • Call University Police at 608-264-COPS, or 911 in an emergency.
  • Submit a student of concern form to the Dean of Students Office for anyone concerned about a student’s behavior.

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