ANN ARBOR, MI — The former University of Michigan student who voted illegally in the 2024 election fled the country to avoid prosecution, according to federal documents.
The 19-year-old student, Haoxiang Gao, was court-ordered to remain in Michigan while on a $5,000 bond for the criminal charges he faced for the illegal vote.
Gao boarded Delta Flight #389 from Detroit International Airport to Shanghai on Jan. 19, according to a federal case that was recently unsealed.
The student was forced to surrender his passport when he was arraigned on the original charges of false swearing to register/vote and unqualified elector attempting to vote on Nov. 8, 2024.
His passport with a serial number ending in “1332” was surrendered to authorities on Nov. 1, according to the federal criminal complaint.
Gao, however, used a passport in his name with the serial number ending in “7137” to pass through airport security and board the flight to Shanghai, according to the complaint.
Related: University of Michigan student from China charged with illegal voting in Ann Arbor
The court issued a bench warrant for Gao’s arrest after he did not appear for a probable cause conference in his case on April 24 – his second court absence.
Gao is now also charged with flight to avoid prosecution, which is a felony punishable by up to five years in federal prison.
Gao held a Green Card and had a Florida driver’s license but was not a U.S. citizen. Gao signed the Michigan Voter Registration application where he indicated that he was a citizen.
The Michigan Secretary of State’s Office and Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s Office revealed the student cast a ballot at an early voting site in Ann Arbor on Oct. 31, just days before the election. The vote was cast on Oct. 27.
The U.S. does not have an extradition treaty with China.
