Cornell University has faced intense scrutiny since a former female student accused seven fraternity members of sexually assaulting her during a party in 2024.
In a lawsuit filed in September, the woman alleged that Umar Matthew Ingalls, Jonathan Newell, Winston Lee, Gillio Lopes, Diego Sarabia, Scott Noris and Scott Kretzschmar raped her at a fraternity gathering on October 19, 2024.
The plaintiff, identified in court documents as Jane Doe, said members of the Chi Phi fraternity engaged in sexual activity with her while she was incapacitated and unable to consent.
She further alleged that the men pressured or manipulated her into consuming alcohol and ketamine during the night. The accused men have denied the allegations.
Jane Doe, who was 20 and a Cornell sophomore at the time, initially reported the claims in 2024. Following an investigation led by Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten, prosecutors did not file criminal charges.
The case has since been reopened after the civil lawsuit was filed. New York Governor Kathy Hochul has appointed Attorney General Letitia James to serve as special prosecutor.
As the legal proceedings continue, additional details are emerging about the fraternity members and the events Jane Doe says unfolded that night.
Here is what is currently known about the men accused in the case.
Cornell University has drawn national attention after a former student accused seven fraternity members of sexually assaulting her at a 2024 party.
The lawsuit included a screenshot of a Snapchat group chat allegedly used by Chi Phi members. One message sent to the group’s more than 50 participants reportedly read, “Free p****.”
Umar Matthew Ingalls
According to Jane Doe’s lawsuit, Ingalls was the person who invited her to the fraternity house on the night in question.
On October 19, 2024, Jane Doe said she spent the evening at two Ithaca, New York, bars with members of her sorority.
The lawsuit states that she consumed approximately 10 drinks over the course of about three hours.
At roughly 11 p.m., she left the second bar and walked by herself to the Chi Phi house after receiving an invitation from Ingalls, according to the court filing.
Once there, she said Ingalls gave her a beer and danced with her. He later took her to a more secluded area and allegedly asked whether she would consider having a threesome with him and another fraternity member.
Jane Doe said she agreed and was then taken upstairs by Ingalls and Jonathan Newell, according to the lawsuit.
She alleged that the two men pressured her to consume drugs and liquor before engaging in sexual acts.
Ingalls, who was 21 at the time, enrolled at Cornell in 2023. The university later expelled him following an internal investigation.
Umar Matthew Ingalls allegedly invited Jane Doe to the fraternity house before asking whether she wanted to participate in a threesome with him and another fraternity member, according to her lawsuit.
The fraternity closed its doors on campus after the school conducted an internal investigation that saw Ingalls and Newell expelled
He is now believed to have returned to Dubai, where he grew up as a child, the Daily Mail exclusively revealed.
Jonathan Newell
Newell is the second frat brother who was expelled from the campus after Jane Doe said that he and Ingalls led her to a room where the alleged sexual assault occurred.
He has also been accused of sending a message that read ‘Free p****’ to a Snapchat group chat that more than 50 Chi Phi members were a part of, the lawsuit alleged.
The 21-year-old is from Broward, Florida, according to 12 News.
Newell, who has never been charged with a crime, enrolled at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, earlier this year, hoping to resume his studies and put the sordid episode behind him.
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However, the Daily Mail understands that he was ordered to stay away from NSU property last week after a flood of complaints from anxious parents.
NSU President Harry Moon released a carefully worded statement Monday morning confirming steps were taken to ‘safeguard’ students.
‘We are all concerned about reports of serious allegations of sexual abuse that occurred approximately two years ago at another university and may involve a student who later transferred to NSU,’ Moon wrote.
‘NSU takes these allegations seriously. The safety and well-being of each member of our campus community is a top priority.’
Moon did not mention Newell by name, nor say whether the undisclosed safeguarding measures were temporary or permanent.
He told students, staff and faculty that the prestigious private university was unaware of the Jane Doe allegations when the newcomer enrolled.
Jonathan Newell, pictured holding a plaque with his last name as a high school student, has been booted from another college campus, the Daily Mail has learned
The 21-year-old quietly enrolled at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, earlier this year after being expelled from Cornell University
Protests have broken out across campus after Jane Doe filed her lawsuit in September
Scott Kretzschmar
Kretzschmar, now 22, is another one of the seven named in the lawsuit.
Following the internal Title IX investigation by Cornell, he and Norris were found responsible for attempted sexual exploitation.
He admitted to entering the room after seeing Newell’s Snapchat message, but said he was only in there briefly, NBC News reported.
Kretzschmar also said he did not touch Jane Doe, did not see her naked, did not ingest ketamine, and did not observe the woman in distress, the outlet reported.
As a result of the investigation, Kretzschmar was banned from ever contacting Jane Doe, had to study sexual harassment and social media use and bystander intervention, and was ordered to write an essay, Jane Doe’s lawsuit stated.
After her lawsuit was filed, it was revealed that Kretzschmar had launched his own legal battle against the school just months earlier.
While the man is identified in his own court filings as John Doe, Jeremy Saland represents him, and he is the same attorney for Kretzschmar.
In the court filing obtained by the Daily Mail, he claimed that the prestigious university pulled a ‘bait-and-switch’ on him by finding him responsible for a disciplinary violation he was never charged with in connection with the case.
John Doe, who refers to the victim as Jane Roe in his court filings, claimed that Cornell’s disciplinary board charged him with sexual assault and sexual exploitation after she first reported the alleged rape.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul (left) also tapped Attorney General Letitia James (right) as special prosecutor
After an evidentiary hearing, a panel that included Cornell faculty and staff found that John Doe was not responsible for the two charges brought against him.
However, the panel ruled he was responsible for attempted sexual exploitation, which John Doe insists he was neither charged with nor notified he was being considered for, according to his lawsuit.
He appealed that finding because he claimed that one of the hearing panel members, Savannah Bao, was ‘literally driving in her car for 45 minutes and was otherwise distracted while a witness favorable to Doe was testifying,’ the filing stated.
‘At the very least, it tainted the hearing with an appearance of impropriety and the clear possibility that Bao missed critical testimony that prevented her from fairly assessing the evidence. It was also incredibly distracting.’
The lawsuit stated that Bao was the director of Cornell’s online master’s degree program for the business school at the time of the hearing.
Bao’s LinkedIn profile appeared to be down as of Monday, and she is nowhere to be found on Corenll’s website. The Daily Mail contacted the school for comment.