The phrase &#8220;there is more to the story&#8221; is an understatement when it comes to what is currently unfolding in Michigan.
The University of Michigan fired head coach Sherrone Moore Wednesday, citing an inappropriate relationship with a staffer. That itself is huge news for one of the nation&#8217;s premier football programs, but buckle up. There&#8217;s more.
In just a few short hours, Moore was terminated from his head coaching position and is now in the custody of the Washtenaw County Sheriff&#8217;s Office, according to booking records, though no charges have been filed at this time.
It appears that Moore was initially taken into custody by the Pittsfield Township Police Department. Pittsfield police said it took an unnamed suspect into custody Wednesday evening as part of an assault investigation. According to the department, a man was taken into custody in the 3000 block of Ann Arbor-Saline Road in Pittsfield Township — this is just a few miles south of the University of Michigan. The suspect was then booked into the Washtenaw County Jail, where he awaits his first court appearance on Friday.
Officials with the department said the incident doesn&#8217;t appear to be random in nature, and there is no ongoing threat to the community. The Daily Wire reached out to Pittsfield Police Thursday morning in reference to Moore&#8217;s case and was told no further details on this case are being shared at this time. The police department directed The Daily Wire to a press release involving an assault investigation.
The university said that it fired the 39-year-old coach following an investigation into Moore&#8217;s improper relationship with a staff member.
&#8220;U-M head football coach Sherrone Moore has been terminated, with cause, effective immediately,&#8221; Michigan Athletic Director Warde Manuel said on Wednesday. &#8220;Following a University investigation, credible evidence was found that Coach Moore engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member. This conduct constitutes a clear violation of University policy, and U-M maintains zero tolerance for such behavior.&#8221;
An author who has covered Michigan Football for decades said in an interview Thursday morning with Fox 2 Detroit that Moore and his staffer were investigated this summer and both denied any relationship. John Bacon said Wednesday that the story changed when the staffer reported the relationship to the university.
&#8220;She went on the &#8216;hill&#8217; (where administration offices are) with the receipts, the text messages, the emails, the documents and so on laying out the details of the relationship,&#8221; Bacon said on Fox 2.
Bacon then opened up about what allegedly led to Moore being taken into custody.
&#8220;He broke into the employee&#8217;s home in Pittsfield Township&#8230;grabbed a knife apparently and threatened to harm her and harm himself,&#8221; Bacon said.
Bacon also said that Moore is being monitored by mental health professionals while in custody.
<a class="c-link c-link--focus-visible c-link--underline" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Wednesday after the firing that Michigan investigated Moore this fall after receiving a tip about the situation with the staffer, but the university didn&#8217;t find credible evidence. On Wednesday, however, university officials presented &#8220;overwhelming&#8221; evidence against Moore, and he was quickly dismissed.
ESPN&#8217;s Adam Schefter said on Thursday morning, &#8220;What we haven&#8217;t heard yet is Sherrone Moore&#8217;s side of this, and he gets his say in this particular situation as well. I do know that he felt like people had it in for him for an awful long time there while he was at Michigan. He felt like there were people who are out to get him. So all these things can all be true.&#8221;
The firing comes days after National Signing Day, when Moore landed a No. 12-ranked recruiting class.
Before the drama unfolded on Wednesday, Moore was part of another controversy. Earlier this season, he served a two-game suspension for the illegal advanced scouting scheme involving former Michigan Football staffer, Connor Stallions.
Moore leaves Michigan with a 17-8 overall record. His final loss was against rival Ohio State.
Biff Poggi will serve as Michigan&#8217;s interim head coach in the Citrus Bowl against Texas on December 31.

Sherrone Moore

‘Moore’ Comes To Light After Michigan Head Football Coach Arrested Following Surprise Firing

College Football

Michigan

University of Michigan

Three Chinese researchers at the University of Michigan were charged Wednesday in connection with a conspiracy to smuggle biological materials into the United States, the Justice Department announced.
Those charged <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/three-chinese-national-scholars-university-michigan-laboratory-charged-conspiring-smuggle">include</a> 28-year-old Xu Bai, 27-year-old Fengfan Zhang, and 30-year-old Zhiyong Zhang. The arrests are the latest in a “long <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alarming-pattern-another-chinese-national-arrested-for-smuggling-biological-materials-into-u-s">string of cases</a>” involving Chinese nationals and the University of Michigan, the Justice Department said.
“Allegedly attempting to smuggle biological materials under the guise of ‘research’ is a serious crime that threatens America’s national and agricultural security,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi. “We will remain vigilant to threats like these from foreign nationals who would take advantage of America’s generosity to advance a malicious agenda.”
Each of the suspects held a J-1 visa and was conducting research at the University of Michigan’s Xianzhong Xu laboratory, also known as the Shawn Xu laboratory. The <a href="https://www.lsi.umich.edu/science/our-labs/s-xu-lab/research">lab</a> is a “sensory biology” research center that focuses on how animals experience their internal and external world through their senses.
In 2024 and 2025, Bai and F. Zhang allegedly received shipments of concealed biological materials related to roundworms sent from a Chinese national, the DOJ said. The Chinese national who sent them the worms was Chengxuan Han, who was recently deported from the United States after pleading no contest to three counts of smuggling and one count of making false statements.
The defendants were fired from their positions at the university after refusing to attend a mandatory meeting to discuss the investigation into their practices, the DOJ said. They later tried to fly out of the country from Detroit and then New York City before they were apprehended by federal law enforcement.
“At some point, pattern becomes practice. And, apparently, these three men are part of a long and alarming pattern of criminal activities committed by Chinese Nationals under the cover of the University of Michigan,” said United States Attorney Jerome Gorgon, Jr.
Agencies involved in the investigation included Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, and Customs and Border Protection.
“This case underscores the vital importance of safeguarding the American people and addressing vulnerabilities within foreign student and exchange visitor programs,” said acting ICE Director Todd M. Lyons. “Educational institutions must enhance their admissions procedures to prevent exploitation, which can pose risks to national security, as demonstrated in this instance. I commend the ICE HSI agents and officers who work tirelessly to protect our nation and uphold the rule of law every day.”
In June, FBI Director Kash Patel <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/feds-arrest-chinese-scholar-for-attempting-to-smuggle-pathogen-used-for-agroterrorism-into-u-s">revealed</a> that a Chinese scholar at the University of Michigan was arrested and charged with attempting to smuggle a biological pathogen into the United States that could be used for agricultural terrorism.

Ann Arbor Cityscapes And City Views

Feds Makes More Arrests As ‘Alarming Pattern’ Of Chinese Smuggling Continues

Communist China

Crime

Department of Justice

Smuggling

U.S.

The University of Michigan is coming under federal scrutiny for its acceptance of hundreds of millions of dollars from foreign countries, some of which it may not have reported to the federal government.
<a href="https://www.campusreform.org/article/umich-accepted-270m-foreign-funds-campus-reform-audit-finds-feds-launch-probe/28366">According</a> to Campus Reform, the university has received over $270 million from 38 foreign countries over the past ten years. “President Donald Trump signed an April 23 executive order titled ‘<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/04/transparency-regarding-foreign-influence-at-american-universities/">Transparency Regarding Foreign Influence at American Universities</a>’ which instructs federal agencies to enforce disclosure rules and require colleges to report the ‘true amounts, sources, and purposes of foreign money’ received,” Campus Reform noted.
On July 15, Paul R. Moore, the Chief Investigative Counsel and Assistant General Counsel Office of the General Counsel U.S. Department of Education, sent a <a href="https://www.ed.gov/media/document/university-of-michigan-section-117-investigation-letter-july-2025-110399.pdf">letter</a> to University of Michigan interim president Domenico Grasso in which he stated, “The Department’s review of UM’s Sec. 117 foreign funding disclosures reveals that incomplete, inaccurate, and untimely disclosures may have been submitted by UM, in possible violation of its foreign source funding statutory disclosure obligations.&#8221;
“UM, an ‘R1’ research institution, notes significant total research expenditures of $2.04 billion in FY24, including $1.17 billion in federal research funding from grants and contracts from and with the U.S. Departments of Defense, Energy, Transportation, the National Institutes of Health, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Science Foundation, and other federal agencies,” the letter continued.
The letter made reference to a complaint filed by the U.S. Department of Justice that Chinese nationals had recently smuggled dangerous biological materials into the U.S. for use at UM laboratories, adding:
<blockquote>
Just five days later, DOJ brought additional criminal charges in a separate matter against another UM-affiliated Chinese national for smuggling biological materials into the U.S. for use at a UM laboratory. These highly disturbing criminal charges against UM-affiliated research personnel follow UM’s decision (January 2025) to close its joint research institute with Shanghai Jiao Tong University. 
Announcement of the closure occurred subsequent to a letter to UM from Chairman John Moolenaar (U.S. House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party) which raised serious national security concerns related to China’s ability to use the joint institute to contribute to China’s “most sensitive defense programs, including nuclear weapons, carrier rockets, satellites, nuclear submarines, and fighter jets.&#8221;
</blockquote>
“Other prominent UM officials have downplayed the vulnerability of research developed at its joint institutes with Chinese research universities,” Moore wrote. “Since January 2021, UM has submitted foreign funding disclosures valued at approximately $375 million and over 20% of those disclosures – approximately $86 million – were submitted in an untimely manner. Additionally, many of UM’s disclosure reports appear to include transactions in which the counterparty was erroneously identified by UM as nongovernmental.”

University Of Michigan Under Federal Investigation Over Receiving Foreign Funding

Department of Education

Education

Foreign Funding

World

President Donald Trump&#8217;s Education Department opened an <a href="https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-opens-foreign-funding-investigation-university-of-michigan">investigation</a> into the University of Michigan&#8217;s foreign funding on Tuesday, weeks after two Chinese nationals with ties to the university were charged by the Department of Justice for smuggling biohazards into the United States.
Michigan has a &#8220;history of downplaying its vulnerabilities to malign foreign influence&#8221; and &#8220;recent reports reveal that UM’s research laboratories remain vulnerable to sabotage,&#8221; according to the Education Department&#8217;s Office of General Counsel (OGC) Chief Investigative Counsel Paul Moore. The Department of Education said that it will look into whether UM is in compliance with federal law after &#8220;a review of the university’s foreign reports revealed inaccurate and incomplete disclosures.&#8221;
&#8220;Unfortunately, tens of millions of dollars in foreign funding in UM’s disclosure reports have been reported in an untimely manner and appear to erroneously identify some of UM’s foreign funders as ‘nongovernmental entities,’ even though the foreign funders seem to be directly affiliated with foreign governments,&#8221; Moore said. &#8220;OGC will vigorously investigate this matter to ensure that the American people know the true scope of foreign funding and influence on our campuses.”
The Education Department is demanding that UM hand over tax records, documents, and lists of all gifts detailing any agreement with foreign governments within 30 days. The Trump administration also wants the names and contact information &#8220;of all university research personnel and contract personnel, undergraduate and graduate, involved in bilateral or multilateral research collaborations with non-U.S. research institutions.&#8221;
&#8220;Today’s investigation into UM reflects the Trump Administration’s ongoing efforts to hold colleges and universities accountable for failing to comply with federal disclosure laws on foreign funding, consistent with President Trump’s Executive Order on Transparency Regarding Foreign Influence at American Universities,&#8221; the department stated.
Last month, two Chinese scholars at the university were <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alarming-pattern-another-chinese-national-arrested-for-smuggling-biological-materials-into-u-s">arrested</a> and charged by the DOJ for attempting to smuggle “biological materials” that could potentially wipe out crops into a laboratory at Michigan. The DOJ said the arrests are &#8220;part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security.&#8221; Michigan, which <a href="https://research.umich.edu/news-and-issues/research-annual-reports/fy24-research-annual-report/fy24-news-release/">boasts</a> of being one of the top public research schools in the world, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/university-policies-under-review-after-chinese-researchers-charged-with-smuggling-biohazards?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=University+Policies+Under+Review+After+Chinese+Researchers+Charged+With+Smuggling+Biohazards">said</a> last month that it was “actively reviewing all relevant policies” after the arrests of the Chinese nationals.
FBI Director Kash Patel <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/feds-arrest-chinese-scholar-for-attempting-to-smuggle-pathogen-used-for-agroterrorism-into-u-s">called</a> the arrests &#8220;a sobering reminder that the CCP is working around the clock to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate American institutions and target our food supply, which would have grave consequences… putting American lives and our economy at serious risk.&#8221;
Earlier this year, UM ended its partnership with the Chinese Shanghai Jiao Tong University over national security concerns after the FBI <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/02/us/5-chinese-nationals-charged-with-covering-up-midnight-visit-to-michigan-military-site">said</a> that five Chinese UM students attempted to mislead investigators about a suspicious late-night trip they took to a Michigan military base in 2023.

Trump Admin Probes University’s Foreign Funding After Chinese Biohazard Smuggling Arrests

Investigation

Trump Administration

Regents of the University of Michigan — who serve unpaid — now have 24-hour security because of threats and harassment from pro-Hamas factions.
UM Regents Jordan Acker, Mark Bernstein, and Sarah Hubbard told <a href="https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-859787">The Detroit News</a> that the university assigned them around-the-clock security after their residences were vandalized with pro-Hamas, anti-Israel messages.
“Since Nov. 17, 2023, our regents and executive officers have been subjected to extensive and targeted criminal acts, including vandalism of private residences and businesses,” University spokeswoman Colleen Mastony stated. “These incidents, detailed in a press release, underscore the unacceptable level of threats and harassment directed at our institution’s leaders and their families.”
“We have taken prudent steps to support our regents and executive officers and will continue to rely on our public safety team to continuously assess risk, consult with external law enforcement partners, and allocate resources commensurate with those assessments,” she added.
<a class="c-link" href="https://get.dailywire.com/freedom/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=freedom&amp;utm_content=freedomeditorial" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/freedom/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=freedom&amp;utm_content=freedomeditorial" data-sk="tooltip_parent">JULY 4 SALE: Get Six Months Of DW+ Free</a>
“The three regents said they continue to get threats via email and social media, as recently as June 9,” The Detroit News reported, noting that in May 2024, activists erected tents on Regent Hubbard&#8217;s front lawn and left on her doorstep &#8220;scenes of genocide in Palestine.&#8221; Her Instagram account was tagged with the message, “Regents, respond to our demands by the end of your board meeting this Thursday.”
Last December, vandals targeted Regent Acker’s home. Acker, who has three young children, said he has been getting death threats as recently as June 9. Reacting to a jar of urine being thrown through one of his home’s windows, he said, &#8220;Any time your family is being attacked for who you are and for what you believe, I think that&#8217;s a pretty scary moment as an elected official, but it&#8217;s unfortunately the world that we live in these days.&#8221;
“It&#8217;s been really hard on them. It&#8217;s been really hard on my wife. It&#8217;s been really, really hard on my kids, especially my 10-year-old, who was woken up by the glass breaking,” Acker added.
The homes of former President Santa Ono and the university&#8217;s chief investment officer, Erik Lundberg, were vandalized last October. “In March, someone spray-painted ‘Free Palestine’ on the side of UM Provost Laurie McCauley&#8217;s Ann Arbor home,” The Detroit News noted.
“This is something that the university has decided, it&#8217;s important to provide this support to their leadership. So it&#8217;s the regents and it&#8217;s also a number of other leaders at the university that have experienced these threats,” Hubbard said. “I feel that I can have this civil debate with people who have a different opinion than I do, and so it&#8217;s too bad that it has ramped up to this point where we&#8217;re concerned for our safety. It&#8217;s not a concern I have every moment of every day, but it&#8217;s certainly something I worry about because we see it going beyond the vandalism in so many areas around the country and in the world, and we don&#8217;t want to suffer that same result.&#8221;

US-ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN-CONFLICT-PROTEST-EDUCATION

Pro-Hamas Activists Trigger 24/7 Security For University Of Michigan Regents

anti-Israel

antisemitism

Hamas

Pro-Hamas

Security Detail

The University of Michigan said on Tuesday that it is &#8220;actively reviewing all relevant policies&#8221; after two Chinese nationals working with the school were <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alarming-pattern-another-chinese-national-arrested-for-smuggling-biological-materials-into-u-s">arrested</a> for smuggling potentially dangerous &#8220;biological materials&#8221; into the United States.
The university, which <a href="https://research.umich.edu/news-and-issues/research-annual-reports/fy24-research-annual-report/fy24-news-release/">boasts</a> of being one of the top public research schools in the world, has come under the microscope as two Chinese researchers doing PhD and post-doctoral work at U-M were charged by the Department of Justice this month after they were caught allegedly smuggling hazardous materials that could wipe out crops.
&#8220;Recently, several individuals have been accused of trying to transport materials across international borders in violation of federal laws and U-M policies, and of making false statements to law enforcement. The university takes these situations extremely seriously,&#8221; said Arthur Lupia, U-M&#8217;s interim Vice President for Research and Innovation. &#8220;That is why the university is: Fully cooperating with federal investigations about these matters; Actively reviewing all relevant policies; Reexamining internal protocols to determine how to improve training and provide additional guidance; and Ensuring that failure to comply with all laws, regulations, and policies will have consequences, up to termination.&#8221;
Earlier this week, a PhD student from Wuhan, China, was arrested at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport for attempting to smuggle “biological materials” into a U-M laboratory. Chengxuan Han told authorities that she had previously sent packages to the United States with biological material related to <a href="https://www.ars.usda.gov/news-events/news/research-news/2023/bioluminescence-may-shine-light-on-roundworm-secrets/#:~:text=Even%20though%20roundworms%20are%20nearly,crop%20losses%20worldwide%20each%20year." target="_blank" rel="noopener">roundworms</a>, a parasitic worm that can “pose major problems in corn, soybean, peanut and other crops,” according to the DOJ.
The arrest of Han marked the second time this month that a Chinese citizen with connections to the University of Michigan has been charged with smuggling potential biological threats into the country. Michigan scholar Yunqing Jian, along with her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, were also charged by the federal government with attempting to smuggle a fungal plant into the country that could potentially cause &#8220;head blight,&#8221; a disease that can wipe out wheat, barley, corn, and rice crops.
U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr. called the arrests &#8220;part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security.&#8221;
&#8220;The American taxpayer should not be underwriting a PRC-based smuggling operation at one of our crucial public institutions,” Gorgon added.
Last year, U-M <a href="https://research.umich.edu/news-and-issues/research-annual-reports/fy24-research-annual-report/fy24-news-release/">said</a> it spent $1.17 billion in &#8220;federally sponsored research expenditures,&#8221; adding that &#8220;Federal funding now accounts for 57% of the university’s total research volume.&#8221; Some of that funding has been <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/health/2025/06/08/trump-administration-federal-funding-cuts-michigan-public-health-agencies-university-research/84007389007/">affected</a> by President Trump ripping up numerous federal grants to universities across the country.
FBI Director Kash Patel addressed the arrest of Jian and Liu last week, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/feds-arrest-chinese-scholar-for-attempting-to-smuggle-pathogen-used-for-agroterrorism-into-u-s">saying</a> it “is a sobering reminder that the CCP is working around the clock to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate American institutions and target our food supply, which would have grave consequences… putting American lives and our economy at serious risk.”
The Trump administration has moved to &#8220;aggressively&#8221; <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rubio-promises-to-aggesively-target-students-tied-to-chinese-communist-party">revoke</a> the visas of Chinese students studying at American universities. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last month that the administration would start by focusing on revoking the visas of students with close ties to the Chinese Communist Party and those studying in &#8220;critical fields.&#8221;
Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-unveils-terms-of-done-trade-deal-with-china?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=undefined&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=3&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+News&amp;rowType=Vertical+Carousel&amp;title=Trump+Unveils+Terms+Of+%E2%80%98Done%E2%80%99+Trade+Deal+With+China">announced</a> on Wednesday, however, that his administration is close to finalizing a trade deal with China that includes allowing Chinese nationals to use &#8220;our colleges and universities.&#8221;
In January, U-M ended its partnership with a Chinese university over national security concerns after five Chinese students were <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/02/us/5-chinese-nationals-charged-with-covering-up-midnight-visit-to-michigan-military-site">charged</a> with attempting to mislead investigators about a suspicious late-night trip they took to a Michigan military base in 2023.

University Policies Under Review After Chinese Researchers Charged With Smuggling Biohazards

China

research

A Chinese national from Wuhan studying for a PhD was arrested on Sunday for attempting to smuggle &#8220;biological materials&#8221; into a laboratory at the University of Michigan, the Department of Justice <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-edmi/pr/alien-wuhan-china-charged-making-false-statements-and-smuggling-biological-materials">announced</a> on Monday.
The arrest of Chengxuan Han at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport is the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/feds-arrest-chinese-scholar-for-attempting-to-smuggle-pathogen-used-for-agroterrorism-into-u-s">second time</a> this month that a Chinese citizen with connections to the University of Michigan has been charged with smuggling potential biological threats into the country. According to the United States Attorney&#8217;s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, Han sent four packages containing &#8220;concealed biological material&#8221; from China to the United States. The packages were all addressed to people &#8220;associated with a laboratory at the University of Michigan,&#8221; the DOJ said in a press release.
“The alleged smuggling of biological materials by this alien from a science and technology university in Wuhan, China—to be used at a University of Michigan laboratory—is part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security. The American taxpayer should not be underwriting a PRC-based smuggling operation at one of our crucial public institutions.”
Han is studying at a university in Wuhan — the city where the COVID virus likely leaked from a lab before it shut down the world&#8217;s economies and killed millions of people. The Chinese PhD student was questioned by Customs and Border Protection officers at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Sunday. During the questioning, Han &#8220;made false statements about the packages and the biological materials she had previously shipped to the United States,&#8221; which she later admitted to the FBI, according to the DOJ.
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/gift/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=wisepops&amp;utm_campaign=dad&amp;utm_content=fathersdaygiftpopups" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gift Dad an All Access Membership. Use code DAD40 at checkout to save 40%!</a>
Han also allegedly told the FBI that she had previously sent the packages and said that they contained biological material related to <a href="https://www.ars.usda.gov/news-events/news/research-news/2023/bioluminescence-may-shine-light-on-roundworm-secrets/#:~:text=Even%20though%20roundworms%20are%20nearly,crop%20losses%20worldwide%20each%20year.">roundworms</a>, a parasitic worm that can &#8220;pose major problems in corn, soybean, peanut and other crops,&#8221; according to the U.S. government. There are many species of roundworms, many of which are uncommon in the United States. Some can cause health issues for humans, such as abdominal pain, fever, and diarrhea, if they get into the digestive system, the Cleveland Clinic <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/15240-roundworms">states</a>.
FBI Director Kash Patel revealed last week that a Chinese scholar at the University of Michigan was arrested and charged with attempting to smuggle a biological pathogen into the United States that could be used for agricultural terrorism, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/feds-arrest-chinese-scholar-for-attempting-to-smuggle-pathogen-used-for-agroterrorism-into-u-s">reported</a>.
According to federal prosecutors, Michigan scholar Yunqing Jian, along with her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, tried to <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-edmi/pr/chinese-nationals-charged-conspiracy-and-smuggling-dangerous-biological-pathogen-us">smuggle</a> Fusarium graminearum into the United States. Fusarium graminearum can cause “head blight,” a disease that can wipe out wheat, barley, maize, and rice crops and “is responsible for billions of dollars in economic losses worldwide each year.” The pathogen can also cause “vomiting, liver damage, and reproductive defects in humans and livestock.”

U.S. – China biohazard

‘Alarming Pattern’: Another Chinese National Arrested For Smuggling ‘Biological Materials’ Into U.S.

A Chinese scholar at the University of Michigan was arrested by the FBI and charged with attempting to smuggle a biological pathogen into the United States that could be used for agricultural terrorism, according to documents unsealed in federal court on Tuesday.
Prosecutors said that Michigan scholar Yunqing Jian, along with her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, tried to smuggle a biological pathogen into the United States last July, The Detroit News <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2025/06/03/chinese-scholar-at-um-tried-to-smuggle-biological-pathogen-into-the-u-s-feds-say/84008953007/">reported</a>. The pathogen, called Fusarium graminearum, causes &#8220;head blight,&#8221; a disease that can wipe out wheat, barley, maize, and rice crops and &#8220;is responsible for billions of dollars in economic losses worldwide each year,&#8221; <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-edmi/pr/chinese-nationals-charged-conspiracy-and-smuggling-dangerous-biological-pathogen-us">according</a> to the U.S. Attorney&#8217;s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. The pathogen can also cause &#8220;vomiting, liver damage, and reproductive defects in humans and livestock.&#8221;
U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr. accused the suspects, who include &#8220;a loyal member of the Chinese Communist Party,&#8221; of pursuing a &#8220;scheme&#8221; of &#8220;the gravest national security concerns.&#8221;
&#8220;These two aliens have been charged with smuggling a fungus that has been described as a ‘potential agroterrorism weapon’ into the heartland of America, where they apparently intended to use a University of Michigan laboratory to further their scheme,&#8221; Gorgon said.
FBI Director Kash Patel <a href="https://x.com/fbidirectorkash/status/1930044884284523001?s=46&amp;t=o-U3qwC25WnWaylJ0oeG7Q">said</a> the arrest of Jian and Liu &#8220;is a sobering reminder that the CCP is working around the clock to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate American institutions and target our food supply, which would have grave consequences&#8230; putting American lives and our economy at serious risk.&#8221;
Jian&#8217;s boyfriend was caught with the pathogen by Customs and Border Protection officers at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
&#8220;When Customs and Border Protection officers questioned Liu, he made false statements to CBP officers about the purpose of his visit to the United States, and his knowledge of the existence of the biological pathogen in his possession,&#8221; an FBI special agent wrote in the criminal filing, according to The Detroit News.
&#8220;Ultimately, Liu admitted to smuggling the pathogen and stated that he brought the pathogen into the United States so that he could conduct research on it at a laboratory at the University of Michigan where his girlfriend, Jian, worked,&#8221; the agent added.
After receiving a doctorate in plant pathogens from China&#8217;s Zhejiang University, Jian was given money through a Chinese foundation funded by the communist government to conduct post-doctoral research on Fusarium graminearum, according to prosecutors. Jian will make her first court appearance on Tuesday afternoon. Both Jian and Liu are charged with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the United States, false statements, and visa fraud.
Jian&#8217;s case marks the second criminal complaint unsealed in the past week involving a Chinese citizen at the University of Michigan. Last Friday, prosecutors unsealed a criminal case against a Chinese student who illegally voted in the 2024 election. The Chinese national, who was in the United States legally, successfully obtained a ballot and cast his vote at an early voting location last October, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/non-citizen-from-china-charged-after-casting-ballot-in-michigan-his-vote-will-still-count">reported</a>. The Chinese student recently fled the country and went back to China, according to the criminal complaint.
Last week, the Trump administration said that is moving to &#8220;<a href="https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2025/05/new-visa-policies-put-america-first-not-china/">aggressively revoke</a>&#8221; Chinese student visas, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/06/01/china-us-students-national-security-threat/">adding</a> that the United States &#8220;will not tolerate the [Chinese Communist Party’s] exploitation of U.S. universities or theft of U.S. research intellectual property or technologies to grow its military power, conduct intelligence collection or repress voices of opposition.&#8221;

Pathogen

Kash Patel Says Chinese Smuggled ‘Dangerous Fungus’ Into U.S. To ‘Target Food Supply’

Pathogens

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Michigan Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel dropped all charges against seven University of Michigan students on Monday, a twist that shocked defense attorneys after Nessel had pushed for felony charges against the anti-Israel protesters.
The seven students faced misdemeanor charges of trespassing and felony charges of resisting and obstructing police stemming from an anti-Israel protest on Michigan&#8217;s campus last year, The Detroit Free Press <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2025/05/05/michigan-attorney-general-dana-nessel-drops-all-charges-university-michigan-diag-protesters/83452242007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. The courtroom, which was packed with people supporting the anti-Israel students, erupted in cheers and chants of &#8220;Free Palestine&#8221; when it was announced that the charges had been dropped.
Last September, Nessel pushed for the felony charges against the students, which could have put them behind bars for up to two years if they had been convicted. The attorney general alleged that the protesters used &#8220;physical force to counter&#8221; police officers who were attempting to clear them out of the area.
Nessel, who is Jewish, was pressured to recuse herself from the case last month as critics alleged that she was biased against Muslims. Nessel said that a letter from the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor defending her amid the accusations influenced her decision to drop the charges. The Democratic attorney general claimed that the letter — which said that Nessel &#8220;has a strong history of uplifting those in both the Muslim and Arab American communities&#8221; — was inappropriate.
&#8220;We have learned that a public statement in support of my office from a local nonprofit has been directly communicated to the court,&#8221; Nessel said. &#8220;The impropriety of this action has led us to the difficult decision to drop these charges.&#8221;
The defendants, Oliver Kozler, Samantha Lewis, Henry MacKeen-Shapiro, Michael Mueller, Asad Siddiqui, Avi Tachna-Fram, and Rhiannon Willow, were also surprised by the decision and will now walk away from the charges in this case. Lewis, who said she faces charges in a separate case over another protest, mocked the attorney general, saying that &#8220;the possibility of recusal was going to be so embarrassing for Nessel that she just couldn&#8217;t bear it.&#8221;
&#8220;And so while all of us, and that includes all of you, refused to cower, she did. And that just goes to show that the bullies and badges and the top pig are just cowards,&#8221; Lewis told a group of her supporters.
The University of Michigan called in police to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/police-break-palestinian-camp-university-michigan-rcna153229" target="_blank" rel="noopener">break up</a> an anti-Israel encampment on its campus last May as university leadership faced calls to push back on antisemitism at the school. Michigan was one of the numerous universities where anti-Israel students set up camp in the spring of 2024, disrupting campus life and forcing schools to ask law enforcement for help in dispersing the protesters.

Dana Nessel

Michigan Dem AG Takes Shocking Turn, Drops Charges Against UM Anti-Israel Protesters

Courts

Protesters

Protestors

As the Department of Education yanks $175 million of federal funding from the University of Pennsylvania for violating Title IX by allowing males into women’s sports, Secretary Linda McMahon should also consider cracking down on other, more common procedural violations of Title IX that have been routinely committed by colleges for over a decade: that is, violations against due process for students and faculty accused of sexual misconduct.
This status quo was created by the Obama Department of Education’s 2011 “Dear Colleague” letter, which gutted protections for the accused in the name of “victims’ rights,” under penalty of losing federal funding. The letter mandated that colleges use the “preponderance of evidence” standard — which only demands that the guilty be deemed over 50% likely to have committed misconduct — as opposed to the stronger “guilt beyond a reasonable doubt” standard employed in criminal trials in actual courts. It also allowed alleged victims to appeal the result of a disciplinary hearing — a form of double jeopardy otherwise barred by the legal system. Moreover, it discouraged cross-examination of victims, claiming this would “retraumatize” them, and enabled a single-investigator model, in which the person investigating the sexual misconduct claim would also adjudicate the sexual misconduct claim and decide as to whether or not the accused was guilty — giving the investigator the near absolute power to be “prosecutor, judge, and jury” at once, as the Foundation for Individual Rights and Education <a href="https://www.thefire.org/news/breaking-new-title-ix-regulations-undermine-campus-free-speech-and-due-process-rights" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called</a> it.
Having received Obama’s memo, colleges went above and beyond — the Constitution, that is: even after President Trump took office for the first time and then-Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos rescinded the Obama-era “Dear Colleague” letter in 2017, colleges kept their kangaroo courts — and began to be taken to court themselves. In two notable cases, federal courts determined that accused students at the <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/09/26/us-appeals-court-finds-student-accused-sexual-assault-was-denied-due-process" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of Cincinnati</a> and the <a href="https://www.thefire.org/news/court-holds-university-michigan-administrators-personally-liable-violating-students-due" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of Michigan</a> had their constitutional rights to due process violated. Per a 2019 <a href="https://nyujlpp.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Harris-Johnson-Campus-Courts-in-Court-22-nyujlpp-49.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">study</a> by Samantha Harris and K.C. Johnson, over 500 lawsuits were filed by accused students in the post-2011 period; 340 lawsuits went to federal court; colleges lost over 90 federal decisions; and colleges chose to settle over 70 lawsuits out of court before a decision could be made. This was around the peak of #MeToo and #BelieveAllWomen: in that cultural moment, anyone accused of sexual misconduct was essentially presumed guilty until proven innocent, a horrible inversion of the American rule of law.
Eventually, in 2020, DeVos established a rule ensuring Title IX proceedings would respect due process and treat both accuser and accused fairly. Because DeVos used the rulemaking process, rather than ruling by “Dear Colleague” fiat as her predecessor did, her decision was harder to reverse by the Biden administration. As a result, the Biden rule came toward the end of his administration in 2024, and, thanks to the administration’s overreaching attempt to rewrite Title IX to include “gender identity,” was immediately caught up in federal injunctions and barely implemented by the time Trump took office a second time and officially brought back the DeVos rule. That means that despite the change in administrations and attempted changes to Title IX by Biden, most colleges have been subject to the DeVos rule for most of the past five years.
Nevertheless, <a href="https://x.com/kcjohnson9/status/1893051067799060764" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lawsuits</a> over the past several years have continued to be filed by accused students and faculty alleging that their colleges treated them unfairly in Title IX proceedings. Just this month, the Fourth Circuit <a href="https://www.carolinajournal.com/expelled-unc-student-can-pursue-reinstatement-not-money-in-federal-suit/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ruled</a> in favor of an accused student at the University of North Carolina, noting that due process, live hearings, and cross-examination are crucial in Title IX proceedings. The persistence of lawsuits from the accused suggests that colleges are still not treating the accused fairly, and, as a result, are not only potentially disciplining, expelling, and firing perfectly innocent people — mostly men — they are also undermining the validity of all allegations, which makes it more difficult for real victims — mostly women — to be taken seriously.
College bureaucrats act this way in part because they are concerned with their own interests first: the #MeToo zeitgeist of yesterday still has them convinced that the fallout from blatantly unconstitutional proceedings will be less damaging to them than the possibility of activists calling them “rape apologists” for treating accused students and faculty with fairness. The Department of Education can change this calculus by stripping federal funds from every institution violating the rights of the accused. Only harsh federal action and the potential for penalties where it hurts will show colleges that they will suffer more for presuming guilt and holding unfair proceedings than they will for presuming innocence and treating both parties fairly, as the American rule of law demands.
On a more human note, colleges are often the places where young men and young women form their opinions of the world and of each other. Especially at a time when relations between the sexes are <a href="https://www.economist.com/international/2024/03/13/why-the-growing-gulf-between-young-men-and-women" target="_blank" rel="noopener">souring</a>, it is crucial that colleges be expected to follow the law if they are to continue to be entrusted with taxpayer dollars.
* * *
Neeraja Deshpande is a policy analyst and engagement coordinator at Independent Women.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Views Of Yale University As Ivy League Pay Soars

‘Prosecutor, Judge, And Jury’: Why Campus Kangaroo Courts Should Lose Federal Funding

'Prosecutor, Judge, And Jury': Why Campus Kangaroo Courts Should Lose Federal Funding

American Universities

Betsy DeVos

College

Due Process

Obama Administration

Opinion

Title IX

University of Pennsylvania

Former University of Michigan defensive analyst Connor Stalions, one of the most controversial figures in college football in recent years, sat down with “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ccs-ep-732-member-exclusive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Crain &amp; Company</a>” for an in-depth interview on the program’s sign-stealing scandal.
An NCAA investigation into Michigan and its former head coach, Jim Harbaugh, allegedly centers on claims that Stalions sent scouts to future opponents’ games to record their play-calling signals. The Big Ten Conference suspended Harbaugh for three games during the 2023 season over the scandal, and Stalions stepped down from his position after he was also suspended. The NCAA has not revealed any information about how Stalions allegedly violated NCAA rules.
During his interview with the hosts of “Crain &amp; Company” released on Tuesday, Stalions gave viewers a glimpse into how he cracked his opponents&#8217; signals on the field, including those of Michigan’s biggest rival, Ohio State. While on offense, teams usually task their backup quarterbacks and graduate assistants with calling in plays by hand motions from the sideline. For most teams, a “live” signaler is calling the actual plays while two or three “dummy” signalers bluff to prevent the opponents from easily deciphering the call.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ccs-ep-732-member-exclusive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH THE FULL CONNOR STALIONS INTERVIEW HERE</a>
Stalions revealed that during the Michigan-Ohio State game in 2022, he quickly deciphered the Buckeyes’ live signaler.
“Ohio State didn&#8217;t change their live signaler in 2022 all season. The whole year,” he said.
“Including the game against Michigan?” asked a stunned David Cone, former Michigan quarterback and co-host of &#8220;Crain and Company.&#8221;
Stalions said that he and fellow staff member Denard Robinson quickly realized that Ohio State didn’t switch out their live signaler for the big game.
“You can call anyone from any Big Ten team when you trade signals during the week, and they all say the same thing: ‘Yeah, it&#8217;s the same guy,’” Stalions added. “Now, when you watch any game on TV, you can see &#8230; you can tell the whole time who&#8217;s live.”
Asked by host Jake Crain if Ohio State kept the same live signaler all season “out of arrogance or incompetence,” Stalions replied, “It might be a little bit of both. I don&#8217;t know.” The former Michigan staffer then said that he correctly predicted that Ohio State would swap out their live signaler for the second half.
“I said, ‘Hey, if there&#8217;s any time all year they&#8217;re going to change, it’s going to be this first drive or the second drive. And sure enough, I said, ‘If they’re going to change, it’s going to be that guy, the tall [graduate assistant] or whatever, and sure enough they switched,” he said.
Michigan went on to win that game 45–23, holding Ohio State to just three points in the second half.
“They changed their like route concepts going into that game,” Stalions said of Ohio State. “I don&#8217;t care what your route concepts are, right? If I can tell you&#8217;re going to run the ball or pass the ball … all I care about is the formation.”
<iframe loading="lazy" title="How Michigan Cracked Ohio State’s Signals – The Untold Story with Connor Stalions | Crain &amp; Company" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-nRZX_Pt0MQ?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Michigan won the national championship in 2024, capping off a perfect season. Between 2021 and 2023, Michigan had one of its best stretches in program history. The team posted a 40-3 record, winning three straight Big Ten championships and making three straight College Football Playoff appearances. After Stalions left the Michigan staff in the middle of the 2023 season, he went on to coach Belleville High School in Michigan as an offensive coordinator, helping the team win a state championship in 2024. At Belleville, Stalions also coached the number-one recruit in the country, quarterback Bryce Underwood, who switched his commitment from LSU to Michigan last year.
Some argue that the sign-stealing scandal surrounding Michigan should result in the program&#8217;s wins from the past few seasons and its 2024 national championship being vacated. Stalions, who joined the Michigan staff as a volunteer assistant in 2018, has maintained that sign stealing isn&#8217;t unusual in college football programs and doesn&#8217;t violate NCAA rules.

Connor Stalions Crain and Co.

Former UM Staffer Talks Sign Stealing Controversy, Reveals How He Cracked Biggest Rival’s Strategy

Crain and Company

Media

Ohio State University

Sports

The Daily Wire

The University of Michigan, which has worked with Shanghai Jiao Tong University in Communist China since 2005, suddenly announced it was ending the partnership.
Last October 31, Rep. John Moolenaar (R-MI), the chairman of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, wrote a letter to University of Michigan President Santa J. Ono, warning him of the risks of a partnership with the Chinese university. His letter came in the wake of five Chinese nationals from the Joint Institute studying at the University of Michigan being charged with <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/02/us/5-chinese-nationals-charged-with-covering-up-midnight-visit-to-michigan-military-site/index.html">deliberately concealing</a> their unauthorized visit to Camp Grayling in northern Michigan. Those nationals came from China to Michigan as students through the joint institute partnership.
“Shanghai Jiao Tong plays a critical role in the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) military-civil fusion strategy,” Moolenaar <a href="https://selectcommitteeontheccp.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/selectcommitteeontheccp.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2024-10-31%20-%20Letter%20to%20U-M%20re%20Research%20Security%20House%20Select%20Cmte%20CCP.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>. “Through its extensive military-aligned departments and laboratories, advanced dual-use research programs, and large-scale operational training platforms, Shanghai Jiao Tong drives the PRC’s military modernization and intelligence capabilities. For example, the university is currently home to several national-level laboratories, including three defense-related laboratories. This military-academic integration enables Shanghai Jiao Tong to make significant contributions to the PRC’s most sensitive defense programs, including nuclear weapons, carrier rockets, satellites, nuclear submarines, and fighter jets.”
“Research performed at the Joint Institute advances the PRC’s defense and intelligence capabilities,” he added. “For example, Institute researchers have helped the PRC achieve advancements in defense technologies from propellant combustion modeling and solid rocket fuel research to anti-corrosion technology for military aircraft developed with People’s Liberation Army (PLA) researchers. They have worked on projects to improve CT imaging technology for detecting flaws in advanced military equipment, which appears to have leveraged Department of Defense- funded research from University of Michigan faculty.”
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/">JOIN THE MOVEMENT IN ’25 WITH 25% OFF DAILYWIRE+ ANNUAL MEMBERSHIPS WITH CODE DW25</a>
“International academic partnerships have deeply enriched our academic offerings and strengthened the global education of our students, and we will continue to pursue partnerships around the world as part of our academic mission,” Ono <a href="https://record.umich.edu/articles/u-m-to-end-partnership-with-shanghai-jiao-tong-university/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stated</a> regarding the termination of the partnership. “As we do so, we must also prioritize our commitment to national security.”
“International experiences are vital for our students in this interconnected world,” he said. “We remain committed to supporting U-M’s international students and will continue to foster international partnerships that advance knowledge and cross-cultural understanding and ensure our campus remains a vibrant community where scholars from around the world can thrive.”
Georgia Tech <a href="https://www.gatech.edu/news/2024/09/06/georgia-tech-exit-georgia-tech-shenzhen-institute" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a</a><a href="https://www.gatech.edu/news/2024/09/06/georgia-tech-exit-georgia-tech-shenzhen-institute" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nnounced</a> the termination of the Georgia Tech Shenzhen Joint Institute in September. The House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party noted in July 2023 that then-Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-WI) of the committee and Chairwoman Virginia Fox (R-NC) of the Education and the Workforce Committee sent a letter to the President and Chancellor of the University of California Berkeley warning them about Berkeley&#8217;s joint institute with Tsinghua University and the Shenzhen government in China.

Aerial View of University of Michigan Campus and Urban Landscape

University Of Michigan Ends Partnership With Communist Chinese University

Department of Defense

Menu