Northwestern University has received two allegations of sexual assault and the use of date-rape drugs in the campus. The two incidents, one that happened on Jan. 21 and the other this month, are under investigation.
The school received tips about two alleged incidents, one on January 21 and the other this month, according to a campus security alert issued Monday night. The Northwestern campus security alert reportedly identified four female students that may have been given a date-rape drug last month at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. Among the four, two "believe that they were also sexually assaulted".
Another report was received on Feb. 2, that a female student was sexually assaulted "possibly involving use of a date-rape drug after attending an event at another fraternity house". However, details of the alleged assault remain unclear.
Meanwhile, Sigma Alpha Epsilon's (SAE) national organization has launched an investigation into the reported allegations at the university that is located near Chicago in Evanston, Illinois. "Any form of sexual assault or misconduct by anyone, brother or not, college man or not, is completely unacceptable, as we do not tolerate actions that are inconsistent with our mission," SAE's national spokesman Brandon Weghorst told CNN.
"When incidents are brought to our attention, we take immediate action, and will not hesitate to take corrective actions or impose sanctions on any member that fails to follow the stringent guidelines we set forth," he continued. Weghorst also mentioned that the school campus' Interfraternity Council and Panhellenic Association has been reached out and that the organization is currently awaiting their response.
Sexual assault, complementing the use of date-rape drugs, has been a rising problem in the U.S. colleges and university campuses. An extensive recent survey found that the claims have shown massive increase in the number of allegedly reported cases among students, especially in the recent years.
