JK Rowling: Online Death Threat Investigation Over Salman Rushdie Support Dropped By Police

On September 27, 2022, 3:17 AM

The Harry Potter author had been issued with the threat on Twitter after voicing her support for Salman Rushdie, who was stabbed on stage at an event in New York state in August.

An investigation into a death threat made to JK Rowling over her support of author Salman Rushdie has been dropped by police. Police Scotland said as the threat was not made within the UK, there will be “no further police action at this time”.

After hearing about the attack on Sir Salman on 12 August, Rowling had tweeted: “Feeling very sick right now. Let him be ok.”

Someone replied: “Don’t worry you are next.”

The Harry Potter creator had appealed to Twitter authorities for support, and later said: ” Police are involved” (were already involved on other threats).”

The 75-year-old British author’s 1988 book The Satanic Verses had led to death threats from Iran due to content which some Muslims see as blasphemous.

Sir Salman had been preparing to give a lecture at the Chautauqua Institution, 65 miles from Buffalo in New York state, when he was stabbed multiple times in the face, neck and abdomen.

Many other authors condemned the attack, including Stephen King, Ian McEwan and Hanif Kureishi.

Speaking about the death threat made against Rowling, a Police Scotland spokeswoman said: “Following a report made to police on Saturday August 13 2022 regarding an online threat, inquiries have been carried out into this matter and it has been established that it was made outwith the UK.

“Inquiries are now complete and there is no further police action at this time.”

The threatening tweet, which came from an account in Pakistan, was later removed.

The same account had also posted messages praising Hadi Matar – the 24-year-old man accused of carrying out the attack on Sir Salman.

Rowling has faced accusations of transphobia following her support for female-only spaces, and last November she revealed that her home address had been made public by activists after she “spoke up for women’s sex-based rights”.

At the same time, Rowling, who denies all accusations of transphobia, said she had “received so many death threats I could paper the house with them”.

Story By news.sky.com