photo by: KU Athletics

Joseph Krause

A player accused of making a bomb threat against the University of Kansas’ football facilities last month is no longer enrolled at KU, the university’s athletic department said Wednesday, and a recently released court document has revealed more details about the incident.

As of Wednesday afternoon, 22-year-old Joseph Michael Krause, who is charged in Douglas County District Court with one felony count of aggravated criminal threat, was no longer a member of the KU football team or a student at the university, a Kansas Athletics spokesperson confirmed to the Journal-World. Krause, originally from Prairie Village, was a sophomore offensive lineman.

As the Journal-World previously reported, Krause’s charges stem from an incident on July 24, when a bomb threat was reported and police evacuated and searched the Anderson Family Football Complex, Beatty Family Pavilion and David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. The KU police department said at the time that no devices were found and that an all-clear was issued about five hours after the threat had been made.

A recently released police affidavit says that the threats against the football complex were made using an anonymous account on a Kansas Athletics tip line called RealResponse, which was implemented in 2022 to give “athletes the ability to anonymously share feedback and concerns in a safe and secure manner,” according to the KU athletics website.

The affidavit says Kansas Athletics informed the KU police department that the anonymous account had been sending messages involving threats and self-harm as well as issues with Mass St. Collective, the athletic department’s partner for name, image and likeness deals. The messages allegedly mentioned two Mass St. Collective employees by name.

The final message received from the account read, “There is a bomb at the football facilities,” according to the affidavit.

Parts of the affidavit were redacted, and it is not clear from the unredacted portions how Krause was linked to the anonymous messages, but the affidavit says the athletic department provided Krause’s name and address to police. The affidavit then says a KU police officer contacted Krause at his residence; a portion of the affidavit after this was also redacted. After officers learned that the bomb threat resulted in multiple evacuations, Krause was arrested at his residence, in the 1700 block of Alabama Street, around 6:30 p.m. on July 24, according to the affidavit.

Krause was released from jail on July 25 after posting a $10,000 surety bond, according to the jail booking log. He appeared in court on Wednesday where his attorney, Christopher Brown, requested a continuance to review evidence. Krause is next scheduled to appear in court on Aug. 30 for a status update.