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The two victims have remained anonymous. Victim 1 is a law student at the University of Miami, the court records show; victim 2 is an employee of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, according to the New York Times.<\/p>\n
Pinder, a Secret Service agent assigned to the Miami field office, has been on administrative leave since the agency learned of the investigation. Pinder and Dyous are both on \u201clevel 1 total lockdown\u201d\u2014 the most restrictive form of house arrest, according to court records.<\/p>\n
The two victims went to an apartment and a few days later, to a house, to be tested on Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity history over four nights, according to the arrest warrants.<\/p>\n
The two victims met every night from April 1-3 at Pinder\u2019s apartment in Sweetwater, where they were quizzed about the fraternity\u2019s history and beaten with paddles and canes for wrong answers, according to the affidavits.<\/p>\n
On April 4, they were told to go to a house in unincorporated Miami-Dade, where the beatings continued and were \u201cmore intense\u201d than the days prior, Victim 1 told investigators, according to the affidavits.<\/p>\n
Four other men, ages 26-30, are named in the affidavits as being present at the home on April 4 and intimidating the victims, but were not accused of beating them.<\/p>\n
One of Pinder\u2019s attorneys, Justin Beckham, previously told the Miami Herald that his client was \u201cgrossly overcharged,\u201d but did not say anything further. The two other men\u2019s attorneys did not immediately respond to a Herald reporter\u2019s request for comment.<\/p>\n
In a previous statement, the fraternity \u2014 which is 115 years old and is part of the Divine Nine, a group of nine historically Black fraternities and sororities \u2014 said the three men accused were not active or financial members of the fraternity.<\/p>\n
Victim 1, however, told detectives that Pinder was the dean of pledges, James was the vice dean of pledges, and Dyous was the one who assigned Pinder and James, according to the arrest warrant affidavits. The victim also explained the hazing initiation.<\/p>\n
Sweetwater Police, which investigated the incidents, learned about the beatings on April 22, when an officer was called to Jackson South Medical Center in reference to a hazing incident. Victim 1 had been transferred to the hospital for emergency medical care after going to an urgent care center because he was suffering from vomiting, fevers, and \u201cimmense pain on his buttocks,\u201d following the April 4 alleged beatings.<\/p>\n
The skin on his buttocks was so damaged that he had to undergo surgery to remove the skin and replace it with skin grafts. His other injuries were so bad that if he\u2019d not received the \u201cnecessary emergency care,\u201d they would have resulted in \u201crenal failure leading to death,\u201d according to the affidavits.<\/p>\n
Investigators later visited Victim 2 at his home where he was receiving a \u201cwound care procedure,\u201d and asked to speak at a later date.<\/p>\n
When he did speak to investigators, he admitted to being present on the four nights, but denied being paddled or any form of hazing. He did, however, admit to receiving critical emergency care and said he was still receiving care for his wounds.<\/p>\n
Police then obtained his medical records, which revealed that he had received \u201cextensive medical treatment\u201d from April 6-April 24, including intubation.<\/p>\n
Investigators found that his wounds and medical history mirrored Victim 1\u2019s and were consistent with that man\u2019s statements of what happened.<\/p>\n
\u201cAmong some, fraternity hazing might be seen as a tradition creating a sense of belonging and brotherhood, but since 2001, hazing in Florida has killed Chad Meredith, Robert Champion and Andrew Coffey while seriously injuring others. This case, with the victims requiring hospitalization, provide clear-cut examples of hazing\u2019s danger,\u201d said State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle in a statement on the day of the men\u2019s arrests. \u201cIn Florida, hazing is abuse and it is a crime. Its victims too often lie in their graves and in hospital beds.\u201d<\/p>\n
This story was originally published August 10, 2026 3:29 PM.<\/p>\n
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