More than three dozen people have been charged in connection to the death of Baruch College student Chun “Michael” Deng, an Oakland Gardens student who was killed in a fraternity hazing ritual in 2013, according to published reports.
Out of the 37 individuals facing a slew of various charges, five people and the Pi Delta Psi Fraternity were charged Monday with criminal homicide, involuntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, simple assault, hindering apprehension, hazing and criminal conspiracy, reports said.
Three people have been charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, hindering apprehension, hazing and criminal conspiracy, while two people were charged with simple assault, hindering apprehension, hazing and criminal conspiracy.
A remaining 27 people were charged with hindering apprehension, hazing and criminal conspiracy, reports said.
According to authorities, Deng died on Dec. 9, 2013, from head injuries during an unsanctioned Pi Delta Psi event in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania.
Deng, who was a freshman at Baruch College, was one of four pledges who traveled to the Poconos with more than 30 members of the fraternity the weekend before his death, according to authorities.
The pledges were reportedly forced to wear weighted bags and navigate a path through a yard, while being repeatedly knocked to the ground.
His death was later ruled a homicide, as a result of blunt-force head trauma.
Following Deng’s death, the national Pi Delta Psi organization severed ties with the Baruch chapter and suspended its national new member outreach.
