TUSCALOOSA, Ala., Oct. 1 (UPI) — Law enforcement arrested five University of Alabama students accused of hazing fellow students as part of a Phi Gamma Delta fraternity ritual.
Colter K. Anderson, 21; John Patrick Buckley, 21; Hunter Lee Wagner, 20; Richard E. Markwalter, 20 and Mark Allen Powers, 20, were booked into the Tuscaloosa County Jail with a $1,000 bond Tuesday.
The arrests were the result of an investigation carried out by the University of Alabama Police Department and the Office of Student Conduct. They looked into allegations the five students made new pledges stand in buckets of ice and salt, a mixture that left burns on the pledges’ feet.
In addition to their arrests, the students have been placed on interim sanctions by the university. The nature of the sanctions were not released.
In a statement, Dean of Students Tim Hebson said his university “will not tolerate hazing” and urges “victims of … hazing incidents” to report the incidents.
The school’s chapter of Phi Gamma Delta was also banned from social events and new member activities. In response to the arrests, the national director of the fraternity, Bill Martin, said the organization has prohibited hazing for a long time. It too has placed a temporary suspension of activities on the UA chapter as the investigation continues.
In 2012, the university suspended all pledgeship activities over multiple reports of hazing in various fraternities, including Phi Gamma Delta.
