Arizona frat suspended for allegedly forcing recruits to eat live goldfish

A fraternity at the University of Arizona in Tucson has been suspended after it allegedly forced recruits to consume copious amounts of alcohol and live goldfish as part of a hazing ritual.

Sigma Tau Gamma was informed by college officials earlier this month that all activities related to the fraternity and the enrollment of new members were suspended and that it was under investigation for multiple violations of the student code of conduct.

“It has been determined that your organization presents a substantial risk to members of the university community,” a letter from the dean of students addressed to the fraternity president reads.

According to the letter, during the fall 2025 semester, new members of the Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity were subjected to “screaming, degradation, and threats from active members,” while being forced to consume live goldfish and large quantities of alcohol.

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The Tucson incident is the most recent in a spate of hazing-related events at U.S. university campuses.

Earlier this month, two men were arrested over their alleged role in an off-campus initiation at a fraternity house at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

On Sept. 24, Madison police said they found around 30 partially clothed males covered in food, condiments, and other liquids sitting on the floor of a basement with a thermostat set to 81 degrees, at the Alpha Epsilon Pi house.

The vast majority of those in attendance were 18-year-olds, investigators said. Several of the men had visible injuries consistent with being physically assaulted, their statement added.

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Alpha Epsilon Pi is an unrecognized and unaccredited student organization, having been terminated by the University of Wisconsin more than a decade ago after several conduct violations related to underage drinking, hazing, and unauthorized events were reported.

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The university addressed the incident in a statement last week, saying it was “fully committed to preventing and addressing hazing and takes all incidents involving our community seriously,” and that its Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards was investigating.

Despite not being affiliated with the university, the chapter continues to be recognized by its national organization, meaning it is legally allowed to operate as a fraternity chapter.

In New York on Monday, prosecutors reopened an investigation into an alleged drugging and gang rape at the Chi Phi fraternity house on the Cornell University campus in October 2024.

The investigation is being reexamined in response to a lawsuit filed by a woman who says she was sexually assaulted by seven students after being pressured to snort ketamine, smoke marijuana and drink alcohol.

She became completely incapacitated while frat members were sexually assaulting her, the lawsuit alleges.

The accuser is suing the men, the Chi Phi fraternity, the university, an Ithaca bar and others, seeking undisclosed damages.

She was a 20-year-old Cornell student at the time of the alleged assault and a sorority member.

The university said in a statement that it supports the decision to reopen the investigation and that it had conducted its own and issued sanctions, including expelling some students and suspending others.

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It also said the on-campus Chi Phi chapter was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus.

Cornell said a school task force on campus sexual assault, formed in 2025, made recommendations earlier this year, several of which have been implemented while others are in development.