FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Michael Marron, 20, died in a bathroom at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) chapter at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.
Washington County Coroner Roger Morris confirmed to KNWA/FOX 24 about the student’s death but did not release the cause of death.
The University of Arkansas Police Department Captain Gary Crain said a call came in at 1:23 p.m. on Saturday, January 23, about a student “who had passed out in the bathroom at the fraternity.”
Police reported the student, now identified as Marron, as unresponsive when they arrived on scene at 110 N. Stadium Drive.
SAE DETAILS, ACCORDING TO THE UNIVERSITY’S WEBSITE
The Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) Chapter was founded on March 9, 1856, and established at the University of Arkansas on July 9, 1894. Three of the last 11 Governors of Arkansas have been SAEs and the Alpha Upsilon Chapter is the largest SAE chapter in the nation.
FAMOUS ALUMNI:
- Mo Elliott
- Gov. David Pryor
- Sen. Mark Pryor
- William Dillard
SAE FRAT HOUSE DEATHS NATIONALLY
Dec. 6, 2020: Fraternity house student death, 22, at Florida State University (FSU), per FSU Police Department.
June 24, 2020: A former student fell from the roof of the Florida State University fraternity and died. The victim was 21 years old, per FSU Police Department.
March 12, 2009: At the University of Kansas (KU), Jason Wren, 19, was found dead inside the SAE fraternity house. He was found after a night of heavy drinking. An autopsy confirmed he died from alcohol poisoning.
Dec. 2, 2008: At the California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly), Carson Starkey, 18, was being initiated into the SAE fraternity and died of alcohol poisoning, according to the San Luis Obispo Police Department in 2009.
Dec. 2, 2006: Jake Stiles, 20, of Southern Methodist University’s SAE chapter, died of a fatal overdose — alcohol, cocaine, fentanyl — in the frat house, according to authorities. SMU’s vice president for student affairs stated the fraternity had five judicial reprimands and was on disciplinary probation until May 1, 2008.
Aug. 1997: The Louisiana State University chapter was suspended after Benjamin Wynne, 20, of Covington, La., died of alcohol poisoning at the frat house.
The SAE fraternity has had legal issues for at least three decades, according to online news reports. Violations, chapter suspensions, lawsuits have plagued SAE. Some of the incidents include cocaine-trafficking, drugs, racism, sexual misconduct, repeated hazing, and assault, to name a few.
