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SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) Four San Diego State University fraternity members are facing criminal charges after one of the young men sustained third-degree burns on his body during a skit performed at their party, the county District Attorney announced Monday.
The incident involving the Phi Kappa Psi members occurred last February, when the fraternity was on probation with the university due to issues of hazing and conduct that threatens the health and safety of students.
Prosecutors say three of the students Lucas Cowling, Christopher Serrano and Lars Larsen planned the skit for a party hosted at their fraternity house. According to the district attorney, the act involved Serrano setting Larsen on fire. Both were pledges at the time.
Larsen sustained third-degree burns to roughly 16% of his body when the skit was performed, largely concentrated along his legs. The 19-year-old spent weeks in the hospital to receive treatment for the injuries, prosecutors say.
Larsen and the other two involved in the skit, both of whom were 20 years old, reportedly had consumed alcohol prior to the skit being performed.
Yet after the incident, the district attorney alleges there was a coordinated effort by the three as well as the chapter’s president, 22-year-old Caden Cooper to impede investigators’ efforts, including deleting evidence and directing fraternity members to speak to law enforcement.
In a statement shared with FOX 5/KUSI Tuesday, a spokesperson for SDSU said the university was tipped off to the incident by an anonymous call, prompting the launch of an investigation by the SDSU police department.
The findings from that investigation were then handed over to the district attorney. The fraternity was also placed on interim suspension by the school’s Dean of Students Office, the spokesperson added.
All four students are each facing at least one felony charge in relation to the incident and purported cover-up, including recklessly causing a fire with great bodily injury, conspiracy to commit an act injurious to the public, and violating the social host ordinance.
Each pleaded not guilty and were released on their own recognizance with specific orders from the court, including to steer clear of any fraternity parties and events. Additional hearings in the case are scheduled for early spring.
SDSU declined to comment further on the specific case in the statement, but the university said it “prioritizes the health and safety of our campus community and has high expectations for how all members of the university community, including students, behave in the interest of individual and community safety and wellbeing.”