Edison school board member says she received threatening messages over Talmadge land vote
The board unanimously passed a resolution condemning the threats and calling on the FBI and other agencies to investigate. A police complaint has been filed.
Board member Anjana Patel said she received anonymous threatening messages over her vote on the Talmadge Road land deal. (Edison Television via YouTube)
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Chris Howell | May 22, 2026
A member of the Edison Board of Education says she received anonymous threatening messages apparently tied to her vote on the district’s disputed Talmadge Road land deal, prompting a unanimous board resolution condemning the threats and a call for a multi-agency investigation.
Board member Anjana Patel posted a video on social media on Wednesday describing the moment she saw the messages.
“Today, after my daughter went to school, I sat here reading retracting WhatsApp messages,” she said. “In that moment, I wasn’t thinking as a BOA member, I was thinking as a mother.”
Specific messages were read into the public record Tuesday night by the board’s attorney during the regular meeting.
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“We know where you live and we know where you work. Don’t make it harder for yourself,” one message said. A second message read, “There is a way to do this, and there is a really hard way to do this.” A third said, “You have been warned.”
Patel said a police complaint has been filed.
“You may disagree with my vote on Talmadge Land, that is your right,” she said in the video, “but threats and intimidations are not democracy.”
The board unanimously adopted a resolution condemning what it called “unconscionably threatening rhetoric.” The resolution called on the Edison Township Police Department, the Middlesex County Sheriff’s Office, the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, and the FBI’s Newark office to launch a “full, impartial, and thorough investigation” and hold the perpetrators accountable to the full extent of the law. It also stated that every board member has “the absolute right and responsibility to vote independently, free from threats, fear, intimidation, retaliation, or outside coercion.”
Board member Jerry Shi condemned the threats in his closing remarks Tuesday, invoking the 2023 murder of Sayreville Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour. (Edison Television via YouTube)
The threats appear to be connected to the ongoing controversy over the district’s $9.9 million contract to purchase the Talmadge Road property, which has divided the board and drawn heated public opposition for months. Patel has been among the members who voted to keep the land deal in place. The board has voted multiple times this spring on whether to terminate the contract. The most recent attempt failed 4-5 at Tuesday’s meeting.
Board member Jerry Shi addressed the threats in his closing remarks, calling the messages cowardly and drawing a stark parallel to recent events in the region.
“It is absolutely cowardly that you have to go to that route to threaten a mother,” Shi said. “This is the first time, and the last time. Let’s not forget what happened in Sayreville.”
Shi was referring to the February 2023 murder of Sayreville Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour, who was shot and killed outside her home in Middlesex County. A man was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison in 2025.
“We do not want that to happen in Edison,” Shi said.
Edison Teachers Association President Matt Revnak also condemned the threats. “No one should ever be threatened for anything,” he said. “It’s just incomprehensible that people would go to that extreme.”
The joint Facebook post shared by board members, which included the text of the threatening messages, was signed by all nine board members, including those who have voted against keeping the Talmadge deal alive.
“No matter where anyone stands on the Talmadge land issue, threatening messages targeting a mother and BOE member are unacceptable,” the post read. “This post is not about politics. It is about humanity, respect, and the example we set for our children.”
The Central Jerseyan has reached out to the Edison Township Police Department for comment.
Editor’s note: The Central Jerseyan is free to read and supported by advertising. If you value this kind of local reporting and want to help sustain it, you can become a citizen supporter on Patreon. Your contribution helps fund continued coverage of local government, schools, and community issues.