Police Investigating Brutal Hofstra Hazing Rituals Allegedly Depicted in Pictures

Hofstra's Sigma Pi fraternity has been accused of grotesque hazing rituals — including covering pledges in hot sauce and making them kneel in front of a swastika — in an extensive story published by the university's student newspaper.

The Hofstra Chronicle published pictures of the alleged hazing rituals, which it received from a former pledge named Syed Ali John Mehdi. The pictures show some pledges covered in what Mehdi said is hot sauce and kneeling in front of a swastika, others laying on the floor nearly naked covered in flour, and one of a pledge locked in a small animal cage.

In a statement released Wednesday, W. Houston Dougharty, Hofstra's vice president of student affairs, said the university is investigating the allegations leveled at the fraternity, and has also reached out to the Nassau County Police Department to investigate to see if there were any criminal behavior.

The Grand Council of Sigma Pi Fraternity International revoked the Hofstra fraternity's charter in March. It was days after Mehdi said he sent the photos, along with videos, of the hazing to the organization. According to a statement that the university gave the paper, no real reason was ever given for why the charter was revoked.

"The national organization refused to provide any information to Hofstra about the basis for the revocation and sent a legal letter stating, 'We respectfully decline to share the content of our internal process' that led to the decertification," Dougharty wrote in their statement. "Student Affairs staff investigated at the time, meeting with members of the former fraternity, who denied any wrongdoing. No student brought forth any complaint or provided any information to University officials."

The Chronicle spent months investigating the fraternity. In interviews, Mehdi said that the hot sauce hazing ritual was the worst, as the pledges would be covered in ghost pepper hot sauce — including on their genitals — and forced to kneel for hours on end.

The smallest member of the pledge class was locked in the cage, Mehdi said, and left there for as long as the fraternity brothers decided. They would ask the pledge questions about the fraternity and extend his time in the cage if he got any wrong.

One video also allegedly shows pledges drinking gallons of milk and vomiting on each other.

Most of the fraternity members declined to talk to the Chronicle. However, one person spoke on the condition of anonymity. He denied that the pictures depicted a Sigma Pi hazing process.

"For you to associate that picture that is not of us, there’s no proof in that picture of us besides a person telling you that it was us," he told the Chronicle.