4 Charged in Hazing Death of University of Albany Student Who Drank a Handle of Vodka

Trevor Duffy, 19, died in November of 2014 after he was forced drink 1.75 liters of an alcohol

Photo: Courtesy Albany Police Department

Four fraternity brothers have been arrested on hazing charges in connection with the death of a University at Albany student who was pledging their unsanctioned fraternity last year, an Albany police spokesperson tells PEOPLE.

Olaf Jablonski, 20, Yuval Sucov, 20, Jonathan Maldanado, 21, and Steven Vila, 22, are all charged with first-degree hazing, a misdemeanor, in Trevor Duffy’s death, spokesman Steven Smith says. More people are expected to be charged in the coming days, Smith says.

“We want to create a safe environment for the students who come to Albany to reside,” Smith says. “These types of incidents can’t be tolerated. They re dangerous, and hazing is a crime. When you participate in hazing, you will be arrested.”

Duffy, 19, died in November of 2014 after he was forced drink 1.75 liters of an alcohol of his choice during a fraternal pledging ceremony for Zeta Beta Tau, an unsanctioned fraternity, according to an arrest report obtained by PEOPLE.

Duffy drank a 60-ounce bottle of Belvedere vodka and passed out, the report states. Fraternity brothers allegedly argued over whether or not to alert police before they finally called for help.

Medical personnel who treated Duffy on the scene reported that he had a blood alcohol concentration of .583, according to the arrest report. He was taken to a nearby hospital, where he later died.

In a statement Wednesday, the university thanked the police department: “We continue to be saddened by the death of Trevor Duffy, and we thank the Albany Police Department for their efforts to bring to justice those responsible for this tragic incident.”

The four men charged have not yet entered pleas to the counts against them.

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