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BRPD: Two more suspects pending arrest in Caleb Wilson hazing investigation; further details sparse
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BATON ROUGE - At a news conference Friday morning, the Baton Rouge Police Chief said two more suspects are pending arrest in an investigation into the death of Southern University student Caleb Wilson, who died during an Omega Psi Phi hazing incident.
The first arrest in the case came Thursday night when SU graduate Caleb McCray was arrested for alleged criminal hazing and manslaughter. McCray's bond was set at $100,000, with $75,000 for manslaughter and $25,000 for criminal hazing.
Chief TJ Morse said detectives were in the process of obtaining warrants for two additional suspects in Wilson's death and that officers expected the two men — Isaiah Smith and Kyle Thurman — to turn themselves in by the end of the day Friday.
The WBRZ Investigative Unit previously reported that up to 10 people could be facing charges.
Morse detailed some aspects of BRPD's investigation and said it is not ruling out further arrests. Obstruction was also mentioned as a possible charge for some of the fraternity members at the "ritual" who did not call 911 when Wilson collapsed or told hospital staff the incorrect location and circumstances around his condition when he was brought to the emergency room.
According to an affidavit, the men who dropped Wilson off at the hospital said that his injuries happened at North Sherwood Forest Community Park when Wilson was struck in the chest while playing basketball. Instead, the injuries were sustained during an alleged hazing ritual during a meeting at a Woodcrest Drive flooring company, the document says.
Wilson and other pledges were punched multiple times in the chest with boxing gloves by McCray and two others. Wilson then collapsed after being punched a fourth time by McCray and began to have a seizure before being brought to the hospital, police documentation said. The men who dropped Wilson off at Baton Rouge General had all left before officers arrived at the hospital.
Southern University President Dennis Shields said expulsion was being weighed as a possible consequence for the students allegedly involved, but Shields iterated that all those involved in the investigation would receive their due process.
"The Baton Rouge campus chapter of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity has been ordered to cease all activities," Shields said.
Additionally, all other Greek organizations on campus have been ordered to halt additional membership intake for "at minimum the remainder of the academic year." Activities for all students organizations was also suspended in the immediate aftermath of Wilson's death.
Shields said the University's "collective thoughts and prayers are with Caleb's friends, family, classmates and all who knew and loved him."
"We have high standards for (the experience our students have on our campus)," he said. "And we intend to preserve those standards and act expeditiously to resolve this matter such that nothing like this happens in the future."
Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore said at the news conference that one of the components of the investigation was the Max Gruver Act, a law that went into effect following the hazing death of an LSU student of the same name.
McCray's attorney issued a statement Friday morning on his client's behalf.
"At this time, we are thoroughly reviewing all evidence and circumstances surrounding this case," Attorney Phillip Robinson wrote in the statement. "We are committed to ensuring that all facts are properly examined and that due process is followed."
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