The man authorities said shot and killed a University of Arizona professor had exhibited similar harassing and threatening behavior during his time at San Diego State University, resulting in a restraining order from a student, records show.
Before attending the UA, Murad Dervish, 46, was a student and teacher’s assistant at San Diego State University. During his time there, Dervish had also harassed and threatened professors and students via email.
Police said Dervish, 46, shot and killed Thomas Meixner, the head of the Department of Hydrology and Atmospheric Sciences, on Oct. 5. Dervish, who was previously a graduate student, had ongoing issues with the department following a bad grade he received in one of his classes, police records show.
Due to these issues, Dervish was dismissed from his degree program and his employment as a graduate student a month later, records show. Dervish had blamed the department members for his dismissal and harassed and sent threatening emails and text messages to multiple professors, including Meixner.
Despite being issued a no contact order by the UA, Dervish continued to harass staff members with threatening and racist emails and texts, police reports say.
Similar troubles
In January 2019, a female SDSU student, who had been previously enrolled in a physics class that Dervish was a teacher’s assistant for, received an unsolicited email from him. In the email, he said she was a beautiful and nice girl, how he really liked having her in his lab and he hopes she was fine, police records from that school’s police department state.
Though the email made her uncomfortable, the student did not respond. A month later, Dervish emailed her again, saying how he should’ve taken disciplinary action against her during the physics class and asked for an apology for her behavior, police records say.
Feeling confused, the student responded telling him she felt attacked, that his behavior is inappropriate and to stop contacting her. Dervish sent two more emails in response where he apologized and expressed his interest in her again, inviting her out for a cup of coffee, police records say.
In the spring of the 2019 semester, the student said she saw Dervish three times on campus and felt like he may have followed her into a building. He was also a proctor during one of her midterms. While he didn’t make contact with her, she felt like he was trying to make eye contact, which she avoided, police records say.
In June 2020, Dervish emailed the student again and asked her how she was doing, saying, “I think of you very often — daily in fact.” After receiving this email, the student filed a sexual misconduct Title IX complaint against Dervish, police records say.
A month later, the student received a Facebook message from an account with the name “Jak Black,” who was responding to an ad she had posted about a room for rent. In the message, the account asked her if the room is still available, police records say. The student said no, which is when Dervish revealed it was him.
The student told Dervish to stop contacting her and expressed her concerns regarding his behavior with SDSU. As a result, SDSU issued an order for Dervish to stop contacting the student in July, police records say.
In August, a Twitter account using the name “Tom Snow” liked a photo from the student’s account that was posted in 2014. The student was able to determine it was Dervish’s account since he had identified himself as “Derv” in one of his posts, police records say.
The student told police she was extremely concerned for her safety and desired information on obtaining a restraining order. An officer tried to make contact with Dervish on two occasions, but had never heard back, police records say.
According to San Diego court records, the student had a restraining order filed against Dervish in 2020.
Racial slurs in emails
Due to the harassment of the student, Dervish was released from his teacher’s assistant duties. Dervish became aggravated and began to email SDSU faculty and staff members about the incident, police records say.
In the emails, Dervish uses racial slurs and says, “I hope someone blows you expletive brains out,” police records say. Dervish also used racial slurs and said he hoped someone blew their brains out in emails he sent UA Department of Hydrology and Atmospheric Sciences professors.
Despite being told by police to stop contacting the staff members, Dervish continued to send emails for over a year, police records say.
After doing a records check, SDSU police contacted the UA police after seeing Dervish was committing the same crimes there, police records say. The UAPD officer told them that Dervish had continued to contact staff members despite being told to stop, police records say.
At the time this report was made, SDSU police said they would be meeting with SDSU IT in order to attempt to set up a system where all harassing emails sent by Dervish to employees would be directed away from victims and sent directly to police instead, police records say.
One of the SDSU reports indicate officers were still trying to reach Dervish to request that he stop the harassing behavior as late as early September, just about a month before the UA shooting. The report references similar issues with Dervish at the UA.
Dervish has been indicted on charges of first-degree murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited possessor, endangerment and burglary. He is being held without bond at the Pima County jail.
