U-M Student Made Up Story About Man Threatening to Burn Hjiab, Police Say

A University of Michigan student who told police in November that a man threatened to set her hijab on fire could face charges after investigators discovered she fabricated the entire story, police announced Wednesday.

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“Investigators conducted witness interviews and reviewed multiple surveillance videos of the area in question,” the department said. “During the course of the investigation, numerous inconsistencies in the statements provided by the alleged victim were identified. Following a thorough investigation, detectives have determined the incident in question did not occur.”

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The student initially claimed the incident happened Nov. 11 when a man allegedly demanded she remove her hijab, a headscarf often worn by Muslim women, or be set on fire with a lighter.

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After the incident, the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations called for the incident to be investigated as a hate crime, saying the “alleged attack is just the latest anti-Muslim incident reported since the election of Donald Trump as president.”

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