Former Michigan linebacker Elysee Mbem-Bosse apologized Sunday in a statement posted online for a string of threatening Twitter messages directed at coach Jim Harbaugh.
Mbem-Bosse said he felt that he was kicked off the Wolverines without reason and that his rights were violated by university police.
Mbem-Bosse said he takes full responsibility for a series of messages posted Monday that referenced Michigan's open carry law for firearms and made other vague references to violence, such as "calling the morgue."
Mbem-Bosse also tagged Harbaugh's Twitter handle in the same thread. Police were notified about the messages Monday night and opened an investigation. A spokeswoman for the university's police department said Sunday that officers "actively continue to assess and evaluate the situation," but they did not believe a crime had been committed.
The sophomore linebacker from Georgia said the past several months have been "very hard on me mentally, physically and emotionally."
Michigan confirmed that Mbem-Bosse has not been a part of the football program since the middle of November. He briefly left school around that time to deal with a family emergency. Mbem-Bosse said Sunday that he was given no explanation for why he was kicked off the team. He said multiple people at the university did not return his phone calls when he tried to figure out his standing with the program and how to make a return.
Harbaugh told the Detroit News last week that he considered the situation "a serious matter." He declined to answer a question about whether he felt his safety was in doubt because of the messages.
"I'm confident our administration and university officials will take the proper steps and are taking the proper steps," he told the Detroit News.
Athletic director Warde Manuel told reporters last week that he was concerned about the threats and also concerned about Mbem-Bosse "and where he is as a student."
Mbem-Bosse also said he was "harassed by the university police" and was told he was mentally ill without a proper evaluation, which he claims is a violation of his civil rights. Police declined to confirm that they had spoken to Mbem-Bosse or provide any details about their interactions with him because it is against policy to speak about an ongoing investigation.
Mbem-Bosse ended his statement Sunday by saying, "at the end of the day, I want to play football."