The NYPD kept tabs on college students across state lines, monitoring their activities at school and home, according to a new report from the Associated Press.
The police department has been criticized for sending undercover police officers into mosques and tracking places Muslims congregate in New York City.
But the new report alleges that officers also followed people through student websites at Yale, the University of Pennsylvania, Rutgers and 13 others, even sending an undercover agent with 18 City College students on a whitewater rafting trips.
NYPD spokesman Paul Browne told the AP that 13 people arrested on terrorism charges had ties to Muslim student associations, including Jesse Morton, who pleaded guilty to threatening the “South Park” creators.
Groups like the Council on American-Islamic Relations have criticized the NYPD, saying their actions are a violation of civil rights and contribute to mistrust among citizens.
