BU students accused of fraternity hazing appear in court

BOSTON (WHDH) -- Boston University students accused of hazing fraternity pledges appeared in court on Friday.

The students are accused of using hot sauce, honey, fish sauce, and mustard to haze classmates at an illegal fraternity house in Allston.

Three of the 10 Boston University students were in court, charged with the alleged hazing of five fraternity pledges. But one of the alleged victims, who didn't want his name revealed, said he doesn't think his fraternity brothers should be prosecuted.

“It’s really sad, you know. Like I said, they really are a great group of guys, and they are extremely good to us,” the alleged hazing victim said.

Police said in April they found the alleged victims tied up in the basement of a house in Allston. Police said they were covered in food, condiments, and beer -- with welts on their backs.

But the alleged hazing victim said no one was harmed.

“Nobody was physically harmed, no one. And no one was humiliated. Not at all,” the alleged hazing victim said.

The alleged hazing victim said he and the other pledges voluntarily stripped to their underwear and tied themselves together with duct tape during initiation night. He said the other fraternity brothers poured flour and hot sauce on them. He said the hot sauce caused the red marks on their backs and that there were no welts.

“I know by law and by definition it counts as hazing, but the fact that we chose for this to happen, it makes me believe that it wasn’t,” the alleged hazing victim said.

The alleged hazing victim said he's still friends with the suspects who are charged and he admitted he is not fully cooperating with police. He said he has answered questions about what happened, but refused to give police any names.

“I’m not giving names because I am loyal to my fraternity and there’s no reason for people to get in trouble for something like this,” said the alleged hazing victim.

The Suffolk District Attorney’s office said it stands by the charges.