Police find 30 pledges covered in food in Madison fraternity basement

Madison police found about 30 partially clothed young men in the basement of the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity house on the night of Sept. 23, covered in food, condiments and other liquids, and arrested the chapter's president and vice president on allegations of hazing and disorderly conduct. Officers were sent to the house on the 100 block of Langdon Street at around 8:20 p.m. after an anonymous tip.

Brayden J. Klein and Samuel N. Vane, both 20, were booked into the Dane County Jail, according to a Madison Police Department incident report. Local news outlets have identified Klein as the chapter's president and Vane as the vice president. Police said the president and vice president were both at the house and spoke with responding officers. Police Capt. Kipp Hartman said the two allegations are misdemeanors and that the Dane County District Attorney's Office will review the case before deciding whether to file formal charges.

Several of the men had visible injuries consistent with being physically assaulted, police said. A thermostat in the room was set to 81 degrees, creating hot and humid conditions in a basement crowded with about 30 people. Officers declared the event unlawful and escorted everyone outside, then checked the pledges for injuries and incapacitation. No one was taken for medical treatment.

What officers found in the basement

The vast majority of those at the event were 18 years old, according to the incident report, and Hartman said he believed most of the men were UW-Madison students. A photograph released by the department, with the faces redacted, shows the group in a dirty room with black walls and the Alpha Epsilon Pi letters painted on a piece of furniture. Police referred to the men in the basement as pledges of the chapter.

Hartman, who spoke to reporters on Thursday afternoon, said the marks on the men were red and appeared fresh, potentially from a strike to the body rather than an old injury, based on first observations. Police have not said where the anonymous tip that brought officers to the house came from.

Inside the basement of the residence, officers found around 30 partially clothed males covered in food, condiments and other liquids.

The department logged the case as number 2026-437753 and published an account of the incident the following afternoon, along with the photograph taken in the basement. In an update posted at 2:15 p.m. Thursday, police said they are aware that the recruitment process is underway for sororities and fraternities in the community and asked anyone whose safety is jeopardized during that process to reach out. No charges beyond the two arrests have been announced.

Officers collected statements from everyone inside the house, Hartman said. Some of the accounts did not align with what others were saying, which raised concerns for investigators about what they were being told. He described the cooperation police received as limited.

A chapter terminated by the university in 2015

Alpha Epsilon Pi is an unrecognized and unaccredited student organization at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which terminated the chapter's status in 2015 following violations of Student Organization Code of Conduct policies, according to a statement from the university. Police described the group the same way. The national Alpha Epsilon Pi organization still recognizes the chapter, and the university said that because of that recognition the group is legally allowed to operate as a fraternity chapter unaffiliated with the university.

Hartman said the fraternity continues to control the Langdon Street house. The university said it shares information about unrecognized and terminated student organizations with students, parents and families at the start of each academic year.

Wisconsin statute 948.51 covers intentional or reckless acts that endanger a student's physical health or safety, regardless of whether the student consented. The Madison Police Department said anyone whose safety is jeopardized during the Greek life recruitment process should contact authorities, and Hartman said the department hopes Greek organizations always host safe events.

The event happened during rush week at UW-Madison. Hartman said the department knows fraternities and sororities conduct recruitment in various ways, and that the police focus is always going to be on student safety.

Campus conduct case and possible sanctions

The Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards will investigate any students implicated in the incident as part of the university's nonacademic misconduct process, UW-Madison said. Campus officials are providing support to affected students, and the university said its Office of Student Assistance and Support and University Health Services are helping as needed.

Students found to have violated the law, university regulations or university policy could face a range of outcomes through that process, according to the university. The possible sanctions are:

• Written reprimand
• Probation
• Suspension
• Expulsion
• Educational sanctions

University officials met with national Alpha Epsilon Pi leaders on Thursday to review the incident and discuss possible next steps, and the university said the national organization is cooperating. The fraternity's head recruitment chair, Felix Quiros-Keller, declined to comment on the incident, The Badger Herald reported.

National fraternity says hazing members will be expelled

Alpha Epsilon Pi's headquarters said it takes the allegations concerning the Madison chapter extremely seriously and will cooperate fully with the investigation. Members found responsible for criminal conduct will be expelled from the organization, a spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said the fraternity educates its members about their responsibility to be their brothers' keeper, calling that a fundamental expectation of membership rather than an optional value. Anyone who engages in hazing forfeits the privilege of being an AEPi brother, the spokesperson said, according to CBS News.

Hazing is a betrayal of everything our fraternity stands for. There is no place for it in AEPi. No exceptions. No excuses.

Police are monitoring what they believe is misinformation spreading on social media. Student-run Instagram pages and other platforms circulated claims that an undercover officer was involved in the arrests and that feces were found at the scene, according to The Badger Herald. Hartman denied both, saying no feces were found on members of the fraternity.

Police ask witnesses to come forward

Hartman encouraged anyone with firsthand information to speak with investigators, and said someone who came forward with additional information might not be prosecuted, given the level of cooperation they could provide. He said the rumors circulating online are one reason police want pledges and others to talk to them directly.

Dozens of students near the house were asked on Thursday about what happened. Many declined to talk, and some who would speak only off camera said they were afraid of retaliation, WMTV reported.

Hartman said Madison police regularly work with fraternities and sororities to help keep their events safe and legal. The department's concern, he said, is when things go too far and a person's life or physical safety is at stake; that is when officers step in.

Anyone with information about the hazing investigation, including people who were directly involved, was asked to contact Madison Area Crime Stoppers at 608-266-6014 or online at p3tips.com. Information may be shared anonymously and could be eligible for a monetary reward. Klein and Vane were arrested on suspicion of hazing and disorderly conduct and have not been charged, and prosecutors in Dane County will decide whether the case goes forward. Police said the case remains an ongoing and active investigation.