A fraternity chapter at the University of Arizona has been suspended after new members were reportedly plied with alcohol and forced to swallow live goldfish.
University officials notified the Sigma Tau Gamma chapter by letter in early September that it was under investigation for multiple violations of the student code of conduct, including “endangering, threatening, or causing physical harm” to members of the campus community.
The incident is the latest in a wave of hazing cases across US campuses, including the discovery of dozens of partly clothed young men locked in a fraternity basement at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where they were covered in food as part of a pledging ritual.
In New York, prosecutors announced on Monday that they had reopened a 2024 investigation into the alleged drugging and gang-rape of a female student by seven members of Cornell University’s Chi Phi fraternity.
The alleged hazing of new recruits at the Arizona chapter took place during the fall 2025 semester, according to a letter from Jasmin Hayes, the university’s senior student rights and responsibilities coordinator.
“New members of Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity were subjected to hazing,” Hayes wrote. “Specifically, new members were forced to consume large quantities of alcohol and live goldfish. Additionally, new members were subjected to screaming, degradation, and threats from active members.”
The chapter is banned from all activities except essential business meetings while the investigation continues, Hayes wrote. A repeat violation or any attempt to contact or interfere with witnesses could result in more severe consequences, she warned.
A separate University of Arizona fraternity, Sigma Phi Epsilon, was placed on probation for 12 months and fined $4,000 for hazing-related code-of-conduct breaches, Tucson’s KOLD news station reported in May.
In total, six University of Arizona fraternity chapters have been investigated for hazing in 2026, according to the outlet. Allegations include forced alcohol and drug use, as well as incidents of violence and intimidation resulting in hospitalizations.
In 2020, Penn State and Sigma Tau Gamma’s board of directors jointly announced the permanent closure of its Alpha Psi chapter for hazing offenses, including providing alcohol to minors. “Hazing has no place in Sigma Tau Gamma,” the fraternity stated at the time.