A U.S. Secret Service employee in Florida is facing multiple felony charges after prosecutors accused him of participating in an alleged fraternity hazing ritual that allegedly left one prospective pledge with kidney failure and other life-threatening injuries.
What to know about the charges and the victims’ alleged injuries
Marquez Christopher Pinder, 29, was arrested Monday alongside co-defendants Jared Lamar James, 26, and Elijah Delano Dyous, 29. The three men face charges including attempted manslaughter with a deadly weapon, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon causing great bodily harm and hazing with a deadly weapon after authorities accused them of repeatedly beating two prospective members of a Kappa Alpha Psi alumni chapter over four days in April, ABC News and NBC News reported.
According to prosecutors, one victim, a University of Miami School of Law student, suffered kidney failure and underwent surgery after the alleged beatings. A second victim, identified as a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue employee, also required critical medical care.
The two prospective pledges were allegedly subjected to severe beatings, and Pinder was identified as the group’s “dean of pledges.” However, the University of Miami said he is not “affiliated” with the school or “its undergraduate chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi,” according to an arrest warrant and an official university statement obtained by NBC News.
“An investigation revealed evidence of alleged hazing incidents involving prolonged and repeated beatings with canes and paddles,” prosecutors said in a statement, per the outlet. “A failure to correctly answer questions about the fraternity allegedly led to the beatings.”
‘In Florida, hazing is abuse and it is a crime,’ Prosecutor Katherine Fernandez Rundle said
Prosecutors said the alleged hazing spanned four days at two Miami-Dade County locations in early April. The arrest warrant alleges the law student, identified as Victim 1, required “extensive skin grafts” to his backside and continues to experience “extreme pain and discomfort” after the alleged beatings.
They also stated that he suffered kidney failure that could have been fatal. The warrant further alleges the second victim sustained similar injuries despite initially denying he had been hazed, per NBC News.
“This case, with the victims requiring hospitalization, provide clear-cut examples of hazing’s danger,” Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement. “In Florida, hazing is abuse and it is a crime. Its victims too often lie in their graves and in hospitals.”
Secret Service, Kappa Alpha Psi respond to allegations
The Secret Service confirmed Pinder is an employee and said he has been placed on administrative leave while the agency cooperates with the investigation.
“The United States Secret Service takes seriously any criminal misconduct allegations involving one of our employees,” Michael Townsend, special agent in charge of the agency’s Miami Field Office, said in a statement to ABC News. “We are fully cooperating with the investigation.”
A judge ordered Pinder released on a $75,000 bond but placed him under “total lockdown” house arrest with GPS monitoring and barred him from contacting the alleged victims, ABC News reported.
Kappa Alpha Psi also distanced itself from the accused men, saying they are not active members and have no authority to conduct fraternity business.
“Hazing is illegal, strictly prohibited and is never a condition of membership,” national president Jimmy McMikle said. “We neither condone nor tolerate acts of hazing behavior within our organization or from our membership.”