Published on the BBC News website on 6th August 2021
The father of Sanda Dia, Ousmane (R), has been present at a number of court sessions in the city of Hasselt. Photo Credit: Getty Images
Eighteen former members of an elite Belgian university fraternity should face trial over the death of a black student in 2018, a court has ruled.
Prosecutors say the now dissolved white Flemish group Reuzegom subjected Sanda Dia to a two-day initiation ordeal that led to the 20-year-old’s death.
It is alleged the fraternity at the university in Leuven forced the student to drink large amounts of alcohol and stand in cold water for hours.
The suspects are likely to appeal.
The decision to refer the case to a criminal court means they now face several charges as a group including manslaughter, deliberately administering harmful substances, degrading treatment and culpable negligence.
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