Videotape Of Penn State Student's Final Hours In Frat House Vanishes, Additional Charges Expected: Report

Significant developments in the case of a fatal Penn State frat house party were revealed Thursday during the fourth day of a preliminary hearing to determine if fellow Beta Theta Pi brothers should be held responsible for a student's death.

A Beta Theta Pi member deleted footage from a basement camera two days after 19-year-old Timothy Piazza died in February, a State College Police detective reportedly testified under oath Thursday. In light of the revelation, additional charges are expected to be filed by the prosecution, PennLive.com reported.

State College Police Detective David Scicchitano testified that a fraternity member deleted footage from a basement camera on Feb. 6, two days after Piazza was fatally injured while attending a social event at the house, PennLive reported.

Piazza, a sophomore from New Jersey, took a fatal fall after becoming heavily intoxicated at the party on Feb. 2. No one called for help until late the next morning, and Piazza died Feb. 4.

The footage would likely have proved critical to investigators probing what happened in the moments leading up to and after Piazza's late-night fall. Authorities allege underage drinking and hazing occurred in that basement before Piazza, who was highly intoxicated, fell 15 feet down the steps.

The camera had been previously described as "not functioning," but Scicchitano confirmed all of the footage prior to Feb. 6 simply "vanished" and was intentionally deleted by a specific frat brother, PennLive.com reported. While Scicchitano reportedly knows which fraternity brother allegedly deleted the footage, an identity was not released.

The frat house, which has since been shut down, was equipped with a high-tech surveillance system. Footage from a dozen cameras throughout the house were critical in the investigation and revealed a shocking series of events, which included showing an inebriated Piazza become unconscious and then get slapped, doused with water, and jumped on as he writhed in pain.

What more could have been seen on the basement footage will remain a mystery due to its destruction.

Penn State Frat House Death: Fast Drinking, Slow Death, Frantic Coverup In Grand Jury Timeline

The footage salvaged from other rooms, which was shown in court at the opening of the hearing in June, was disturbing by all accounts. Piazza's parents, Jim and Evelyn of Hunterdon County, New Jersey, left the courtroom before the prosecution began airing the footage, which was narrated in detail by Scicchitano.

Journalists who live Tweeted as the video was shown reported that as Piazza's peers watched him roll in pain on the floor in the early hours of the morning, a noticeable silence fell over the courtroom.

The preliminary hearing is ongoing in Centre County Court, where 16 students are waiting to find out if the charges in connection with his death will go to trial. A decision could be made as early as Friday.

Seven of the 18 students charged in connection with Piazza's death are already facing tampering-with-evidence charges. Eight fraternity brothers are facing manslaughter charges.

Two of the accused Beta Theta Pi fraternity brothers have waived their preliminary hearing.

IMAGE: Google, Beta Theta Pi fraternity house on the Penn State Campus