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Two Texas A&M University students are filing a lawsuit against the school's chapter of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity, alleging that a hazing incident left them hospitalized with severe burns.
Patrick Close and Jose Figueroa allege that in the spring of 2021, while they were freshmen pledging the fraternity, members of the SAE chapter poured various substances, including an "industrial strength cleanser known as SC-200," on them during a hazing incident at the fraternity's house, the lawsuit filed last week in a Harris County district court states.
Albritton Tower on the campus of theTexas A&M University on Nov. 24, 2005, in College Station, Texas. (Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
"Close and Figueroa experienced serious bodily injuries including severe burns as a result of the SC-200. … It can corrode metal and causes severe skin burns," the lawsuit continues.
VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH HAZING DEATH LEADS TO 11 INDICTMENTS
The two university students were transported to a nearby hospital after the incident "to undergo skin graft surgery and eventually underwent a second skin graft surgery." As a result of the hazing, Close and Figueroa are now both "permanently disfigured," according to the complaint.
A bicycle in front of a dorm on the campus of Texas A&M University on Nov. 24, 2005, in College Station, Texas. (Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
The students allege that members of the fraternity did not report the incident to school officials, and they are now awaiting a jury trial.
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Texas A&M did not immediately respond to an inquiry from Fox News, but university spokeswoman Kelly Brown told local news outlet The Austin-American Statesman that the school's SAE chapter was suspended on Wednesday for two years and will be on probation for an additional two years when it returns to campus.
The James Earl statue on the campus of Texas A&M University on Nov. 24, 2005, in College Station, Texas. (Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
"Texas A&M will not tolerate actions or behavior that degrades, intimidates, humiliates or endangers students," Brown told the outlet.
"We will continue our hazing prevention education programs, which includes outlining what constitutes hazing and the consequences for such poor choices. Hazing is a violation of Texas A&M’s Student Code of Conduct, student organization policies and Texas state law."
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