Last week, 28-year-old Riddhi Patel was arrested in the middle of a Bakersfield City Council meeting after she openly communicated death threats to Mayor Karen Goh (R) and the rest of the city council.
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“You all are horrible human beings, and Jesus probably would have killed you himself,” she said. “While you guys parade Gandhi around … I remind you that these holidays that we practice, that other people in the global south practice, believe in violent revolution against their oppressors, and I hope one day somebody brings the guillotine and kills all of you motherf**kers.”
Later in the meeting, Patel complained about increased security measures at city council meetings, including metal detectors. After personally attacking the politicians with her words, Patel ratcheted up her rhetoric.
“We’ll see you at your house. We’ll murder you,” she threatened.
Patel then tried to return to her seat as if everything was normal. But Mayor Goh had other plans.
“That was a threat, what you said at the end, so officers are going to escort you out and take care of that,” she said.
Patel was promptly arrested and slapped with 18 felony charges: 10 counts of threatening with the intent to terrorize a public official and eight counts of threatening certain public officials.
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Patel identifies as nonbinary, according to KPAK-TV.
NEW: Protester who threatened to murder Bakersfield City Council members weeps in court as she faces over a dozen felony counts.
This is incredibly satisfying.
“I hope one day somebody brings the guillotine & kills all of you motherf**kers,” Riddhi Patel said.
Hours later, she… pic.twitter.com/t9ajA8eZJv
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 13, 2024
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“Making real threats to elected officials and decision makers is not the way to influence others,” he told KGET. “Nobody on the city council will be intimidated to action.”
Patel is due back in court on April 16.