Police have arrested a fourth University of Delaware student in connection to a wild house party on the school's campus that spiraled out of control.
On Monday around 11:30 p.m., Newark Police responded to a house party on the 400 block of South College Avenue which officials say had become “disorderly.” When officers arrived, they say they found over a thousand people in the area as well as a DJ set up in the backyard of the home.
Police say several people were urinating in public and trespassing through other yards in the area. The residents of the home, identified as 19-year-old Anthony Ladisernia and 20-year-old Evan Touzzoli, were both arrested and charged with hosting a disorderly premise. Both Ladisernia and Touzzoli are students at the University of Delaware.
As officers were dispersing the crowd, investigators say a mob began to block traffic on South College Avenue. Police also say people began to walk on the hoods of cars. According to investigators, one person was recording the entire ordeal with a camera, causing the crowd to swell around it and act even wilder. Police say they took the cameraman, identified as 26-year-old Marcus Hyde, of Chesterfield, VA into custody and charged him with disorderly conduct. According to investigators, Hyde is part of "I'm Shmacked," a group that starts and records college parties across the country and then posts the footage online.
Police say the crowd continued onto Main Street and swelled to several thousand people. They also say the crowd continued to block traffic and walk onto cars. Around 75 officers from the University of Delaware Police, New Castle County Police and Delaware State Police responded to the scene to help disperse the mob.
“There was everyone on the roof, they knocked down a fence,” said a student who attended. “It was a riot. They were jumping and screaming bad things at the cops and throwing beer bottles. I’m not a fan of it. I think it makes us kind of look bad.”
Police say several cars and signs were damaged. They have not yet revealed the exact cost in property damage however. No officers or members of the crowd were injured during the incident.
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On Thursday, police sent out a press release which included pictures of two suspects accused of damaging the roof of a Ford Mustang during the party. Investigators say 18-year-old John Marine of Newark, Delaware turned himself in after seeing the pictures online. Police say Marine is a student at the University of Delaware.
Marine is charged with riot, criminal mischief and disorderly conduct. He was released on a $1700 unsecured bond.
On Saturday, police announced they arrested the second University of Delaware student accused of damaging the car, identified as 18-year-old Stephen Avallone. Avallone faces the same charges as Marine and was also released on bond.
The University of Delaware Office of Student Conduct held an emergency hearing for Touzzoli and Ladisernia. The school has not yet revealed whether disciplinary action will be taken against Marine.
The University also sent a letter to students.
"To be sure, the vast majority of students did not and would not participate in such an embarrassing, dangerous and costly episode," the letter stated. "The few who did have cast a negative light on the University as a whole and on the character of our community."
You can read the complete letter here.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” said another student who attended the party. “Even though it was the wrong thing to do, it was still epic.”
