Investigators believe that a December e-mail sent to Pan-African Alliance (PAA) alumni - which criticized The Primary Source and referred to "magazine dumpings" - is "valid," Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) Lieutenant Detective Charles Lonero said last night. The authenticity of the message was evaluated by in-house computer experts.
A copy of the e-mail obtained by the Daily contained passages allegedly written by former PAA President Carl Jackson which say the group has engaged in "magazine dumpings." Jackson, who is currently studying abroad, declined comment when contacted via e-mail and has referred reporters to the current PAA leadership.
Sophomore PAA President Abdul Farah has firmly denied the allegations. "The PAA was not involved in any of the magazine stealing at all," he said. Source Editor-in-chief Sam Dangremond has repeatedly accused the PAA of orchestrating the thefts, and has asked for the organization to apologize for its alleged actions.
The case has now been sent to the Dean of Students Office, and will remain open indefinitely until someone admits to the theft or the Source presses charges. "We never close a case unless there is a conviction or admission," Lonero said.
Dean of Students Bruce Reitman said the TUPD investigation has not determined with absolute certainty the identity of those responsible for the thefts. He acknowledged that Source allegations have pointed to Jackson, but because Jackson is not on campus this semester, "there is not much more that can be done without his participation," Reitman said. The Dean of Students Office declined to release the name of official suspect.
The investigation began last semester after 4,300 copies of the Source's Oct. 25, Nov. 22, and Dec. 6 issues were stolen from various campus locations. Mostly funded by the Student Activities Fee, Dangremond has said the value of stolen issues is just under $2000 of University money.
The PAA e-mail lamented what it perceived as Source racism, particularly in the Nov. 22 issue.
University regulations allow the Source to press charges up to one year after the November, 2001 incident. But Dangremond said he has no intention of doing so because he does not want to reopen the issue. "I think that would be too vindictive," he said. Farah said the Source has not pressed charges because it has no evidence to prove that the PAA has done anything wrong.
Both Dangremond and Farah say they are looking to put the conflict behind them. While Farah said the Source and the PAA have "no working relationship" right now, he hopes to hold more discussions and debates on issues that affect the Tufts community, the nation, and the world. Farah also said he hopes that, in the future, "the Source does not belittle people but rather focuses on the arguments and issues."
At the close of a year that saw several large cases involving the Source, Dangremond is "interested in moving past this year's events." He maintained that free speech is of utmost importance to his publication and to the Tufts campus.
Reitman said that the question at hand "is whether effective journalism, or even parody, should include predictably offensive treatment of campus individuals just because that right is protected."
