Secret Service Agent, 2 Others Arrested in 4-Day Miami Hazing, Facing Attempted Manslaughter
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jul 28
Secret Service Agent, 2 Others Arrested in 4-Day Miami Hazing, Facing Attempted Manslaughter
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jul 28
Summary
Florida investigators say a 4-day April hazing ritual in Miami left two men hospitalized with injuries that could have turned fatal, prompting attempted manslaughter and other felony charges against Marquez Pinder and two others.
Court records describe prolonged beatings with canes and paddles after the victims failed fraternity-initiation questions; one victim needed skin grafts and suffered kidney damage, while another was intubated to prevent further deterioration and death.
Prosecutors say the abuse began April 1 at a Sweetwater apartment near Florida International University, continued at a second residence, and stopped only after blood seeped through one victim's pants and leaders ordered the victims' clothes bagged.
Pinder, 29, is a 2021 FIU graduate and Secret Service agent in the Miami field office who allegedly served as Kappa Alpha Psi's "dean of pledges"; his lawyer called the case grossly overcharged, while the agency said any misconduct will be addressed after the judicial process.
Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle cast the case as part of Florida's long hazing toll, citing three deaths since 2001 and warning that fraternity tradition has repeatedly ended in graves and hospital beds.