An Indian-American lady was arrested inside Bakersfield City Council chambers Wednesday evening for threatening to “murder” council members and the mayor.

Who is Riddhi Patel?

Riddhi Patel, 28, a pro-Palestine protestor, is accused of 16 felony counts and booked into jail on suspicion of eight counts of meaning to terrorize with the threats, and the remainder of eight counts of threatening metropolis officers throughout her speech.

She was seen sobbing with tears after listening to the felony costs towards her.

During a section of the council assembly designated for public commentary, Patel vocalized her opposition to the proposed safety measures, particularly the set up of metallic detectors, which she perceived as a criminalization of the general public.

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Patel’s contentious remarks immediately threatened the council, stating, “You guys want to criminalize us with metal detectors,” adopted by, “We’ll see you at your house. We’ll murder you.” She additional escalated her rhetoric speech: “I hope one day somebody brings the guillotine and kills all of you motherf******.”

She referred to as out “Navratri a festival of oppressors” throughout her speech and invoked Mahatma Gandhi and Jesu Christ simply earlier than she threatened the town council members.

The pro-Palestine protestor’s inflammatory and atrocious speech shortly went viral on socials like X (previously Twitter) and TikTok.

From Collin Rugg to the Hindu American Foundation shared the video on X, which attracted greater than 3 million views.

“We are outraged that this person invokes Gandhi & Chaitra Navaratri while threatening to murder Bakersfield leaders,” the Hindu American Foundation posted.

“A known Hinduphobe, she has also been ranting against Hindus …. It’s the same antisemitic,” an Indian-American lady posted condemning Riddi’s motion.

KGET TV, an NBC affiliate in Bakersfield, said the council “has been filled with tension” as “pro-Palestinian protesters urged council members to pass a cease-fire resolution for the Israel-Hamas War.”

City council just isn’t intimidated by Riddhi’s risk

In response to the turmoil, Councilman and Vice Mayor Andrae Gonzales who was there on the time of Patel’s speech, said that the council wouldn’t yield to intimidation. He condemned the threats, labelling them as “completely inappropriate, unproductive and is deeply concerning.”

Gonzales defined, “Sit at the table like adults and exchange ideas, go back and forth really trying to figure out how we can find a path together. Making real threats to elected officials and decision-makers is not the way to influence others. Nobody on the city council will be intimidated to action.”

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The United Liberation Front, a pro-Palestinian group, distanced itself from Patel’s actions. The group issued an announcement denouncing any type of threats towards public officers, clarifying that Patel’s aggressive language doesn’t align with their ideas and fails to signify the United Liberation Front’s stance.

Despite the controversy, the Bakersfield City Council proceeded to approve the safety enhancements, together with the metallic detectors, with unanimous consent throughout Wednesday’s assembly.