Disgraced U-M frat agrees to turn over its bank accounts

The now disbanded University of Michigan fraternity whose members were involved in vandalizing a northern Michigan ski resort has agreed to turn over control of bank accounts to its national organization, which had sued in Washtenaw County court to get access.

Sigma Alpha Mu doesn't want the money used by U-M students to pay for the hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of damages caused at the Treetops Resort near Gaylord during a wild weekend party in January, according to a lawsuit filed late last week in Washtenaw County Circuit Court. That money is ticketed for mortgage payments and other bills.

The court had granted a temporary restraining order, freezing accounts at TCF Bank except for mortgage and utility payments and salary payments to the house's cook. The court also set a hearing for 9 a.m. April 2.

But that hearing won't be needed. On Thursday afternoon, the local officers signed a consent order, saying they would turn over control of the accounts, plus blank checks and account records for all the accounts tied to the local chapter.

The local chapter has five days to do that. The court will follow up to make sure the handover takes place.

The national organization declined to comment on the suit. However, in the suit, they said that the actions of the local chapter "caused humiliation, embarrassment and damage to the reputation of Sigma Alpha Mu and its members."

The suit asked for the restraining order because the national organization was worried the local students would damage or vandalize the current house. The local chapter has been disbanded by the national organization and the students have until May 3 to move out. The Greek letters have already been stripped from the house.

The national organization also claimed in the suit it had requested the accounts be turned over, but "the local chapter has refused," the suit said.

The group has accounts that pay bills; another that hold security deposits and another that is used for social occasions.

The suit is the latest fallout from a wild January weekend by the frat.

Sophomores Joshua Kaplan and Zachary Levin, both 19, are facing 30-day misdemeanor charges alleging the pair allowed minors in their supervision to drink alcohol. A third student, who has not been identified because he has not been arraigned, was charged with malicious destruction of property over $1,000.

The pair turned themselves in to Ann Arbor police Wednesday morning, state police said. They were released on a personal recognizance bond. The pair are due in court in Gaylord at 9 a.m. on April 22 for a pre-trial hearing.

The charges come two months after police say Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity members tore up Treetops Resort the night of Jan. 17-18, destroying ceiling tiles and exit signs, breaking furniture and doors, and urinating on carpets. Members from its sister sorority, Sigma Delta Tau, were also at the resort but none has been charged. Forty-five rooms were damaged. The latest damage estimates top out over $400,000.

Minock has said his clients, both sophomores, were only involved in planning the weekend getaway. Kaplan was president of the fraternity and Levin was an events planner.

"My clients are charged under a statute intended to cover conduct such as parents who allow underage drinking at teen parties. The statute requires that those charged had the authority to control the conduct of others," he said in an e-mail. "In the case of a hotel with over 200 college student guests, who had the authority to control guest behavior, the staff of the hotel, or just another 19-year-old guest?"

The national Sigma Alpha Mu organization has permanently suspended the U-M chapter, noting the damage and reports that members were not fully cooperating in the investigation. Sigma Delta Tau was given a two-year disciplinary suspension. U-M officials have said they will launch their own internal investigation, pending the criminal investigation.

Contact David Jesse: 313-222-8851 or djesse@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter: @reporterdavidj