A U.S. Secret Service agent and two other men have been charged in connection with an alleged fraternity hazing ritual in Florida that investigators say left one prospective pledge with kidney failure and injuries requiring skin grafts, while a second pledge was hospitalized with similar injuries.
Marquez Christopher Pinder, 29, a Secret Service agent assigned to the agency's Miami Field Office, was arrested along with Jared Lamar James, 26, and Elijah Delano Dyous, 29. All three face felony charges including attempted manslaughter with a deadly weapon, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and hazing with a deadly weapon.
Authorities allege the incidents occurred over four days in April at locations in Sweetwater and unincorporated Miami-Dade County, as NBC News reports. According to arrest warrants, two prospective members of Kappa Alpha Psi were repeatedly struck with paddles and canes after failing to correctly answer questions about the fraternity.
Investigators said one victim, a University of Miami graduate student, suffered kidney failure that prosecutors said could have been fatal. The arrest warrant states the victim required extensive skin grafts after tissue on his buttocks became necrotic and continues to experience significant pain and impaired mobility.
The second victim initially denied being hazed but later acknowledged seeking medical treatment for injuries that investigators said were consistent with repeated beatings.
The Miami Herald reported that Pinder was ordered held under the strictest form of house arrest after posting a $75,000 bond. James also posted bond and faces house arrest, while Dyous' custody status was not immediately clear. The warrant alleges Dyous appointed Pinder as "dean of pledges" and James as "vice dean."
Pinder's attorney, Justin Beckham, told the Herald his client was "grossly overcharged."
The Secret Service said Pinder has been placed on administrative leave and that the agency is "fully cooperating with the investigation."
Kappa Alpha Psi said the three defendants are not current students and hold no official positions within the fraternity.
National President Jimmy McMikle told NBC News the organization is "a non-hazing fraternity" that neither condones nor tolerates hazing and will continue cooperating with law enforcement. Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle added:
"In Florida, hazing is abuse, and it is a crime. Its victims too often lie in their graves and in hospital beds."
