An altercation that broke out in the middle of a party at the Zeta Psi fraternity house early Sunday morning resulted in a serious injury for one student who was hospitalized and required 25 stitches.
According to Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) Sgt. Robert McCarthy, officers responded to an emergency call reporting a fight at Zeta Psi and a student in need of immediate medical attention.
TUPD and emergency medical aid officers at 12:04 a.m. arrived at the Zeta Psi residence at 80 Professors Row. The student involved stated that he had been struck with a glass object in the face and neck region.
Tufts Emergency Medical Services (TEMS), Somerville Fire Department and Cataldo Ambulance Service administered medical care to the student at the scene, but glass was still lodged in the student's face and neck area, according to McCarthy.
The student was bleeding excessively from lacerations on the left side of this face and neck and was immediately transported by ambulance to Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), where he was treated. "He received 25 stitches for his injuries," McCarthy said.
No official word has been announced about his current condition, but the student's friends said that he was currently at home recovering.
McCarthy said that at the scene itself, TUPD cleared out the party and gathered enough information to determine the basic circumstances surrounding the altercation.
"A witness stated that someone threw a bottle and hit the student in the face for no reason," he said. "There was some kind of an altercation. Someone struck the student — either threw a bottle or a beer mug on the side of his face."
McCarthy indicated that it was initially unclear whether the student was struck by a bottle or by a broken beer mug.
He added that the student seemed uncertain about the identity of his attacker. TUPD officers were unable to determine the identity of the perpetrator based on conversations with other sources on Saturday night.
"Everyone was saying they didn't know who threw the bottle," McCarthy said. "One resident did say an argument had taken place in the basement area."
Details of the incident are still being assembled and cannot be disclosed, according to McCarthy. "People will be interviewed," he said. "It's an ongoing investigation."
The officer leading the investigation, TUPD Sgt. Joseph Tilton, declined to comment on the status of the investigation into the incident.
Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman declined to comment on the incident and the possible disciplinary consequences, which the victim, the attacker and Zeta Psi may face.
Senior Byron Crowe, the president of Zeta Psi, said that the fraternity is in the process of conducting its own investigation into the night's affairs.
"We're conducting an internal investigation," Crowe said. "I'm collecting information from people right now."
He declined to comment further for the moment because he did not have a clear understanding of the details surrounding the incident.
