Criminal case reopened in Cornell sexual assault case involving Korean student

A criminal investigation into a Cornell sexual assault case involving a Korean student has been reopened in New York. Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said his office is reconsidering whether to pursue charges against seven current and former Cornell students after reviewing the civil complaint and meeting with Jane Doe and her attorneys. Cornell said it supports the decision to let Doe’s account be heard by a grand jury.

The civil lawsuit was filed this month by a former Cornell student identified as Jane Doe against seven current and former Cornell students.

Doe alleges she was drugged and sexually assaulted by multiple members of the Chi Phi fraternity at its house in October 2024.

Van Houten said his office has assigned a senior prosecutor to prepare the case for presentation to the Tompkins County Grand Jury.

The district attorney said Doe’s account to Cornell University Police in 2024 differed significantly from the allegations in the civil lawsuit.

Cornell said its months-long Title IX investigation led to sanctions including suspensions and expulsions, and the Chi Phi chapter was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus.

Published Sep 29, 2026 2:07 am KST

Updated Sep 29, 2026 4:20 am KST

People walk on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., Feb. 2, 2024. AP-Yonhap

SEATTLE — A Korean student named as one of seven defendants in a sexual assault lawsuit involving Cornell University is facing renewed scrutiny as prosecutors in New York are reopening the criminal investigation into the 2024 case.

Winston Lee, widely believed to be a Korean national, is among seven current and former Cornell students accused in a civil lawsuit filed this month by a former student identified as Jane Doe. She alleges that she was drugged and sexually assaulted by multiple members of the Chi Phi fraternity at its house in October 2024.

No criminal charges were filed following the initial police investigation, but Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said Monday that his office has begun reconsidering whether charges should be pursued.

“I have been asked by the community to revisit the decision whether to pursue criminal charges against the seven fraternity members,” Van Houten said in a statement. “I have already begun that process, starting with our conversation with Jane Doe and her attorneys.”

Van Houten said his office intends to take the case before a grand jury after determining what charges, if any, are appropriate.

“The Grand Jury will be able to consider the testimony of Jane Doe as well as any new evidence raised by the allegations of the civil complaint,” he said.

The district attorney has assigned a senior prosecutor to prepare the case for presentation to the Tompkins County Grand Jury.

Van Houten also explained why criminal charges were not pursued following the original police investigation, saying Doe's account to Cornell University Police in 2024 differed significantly from the allegations in the civil lawsuit.

He said his office relied on the investigation conducted by Cornell police rather than conducting a parallel investigation of its own.

Van Houten acknowledged, however, that sexual assault victims may need time to fully process what happened to them and that new evidence can warrant reconsideration of an earlier decision.

“I recognize the reality that it can take years of therapy and healing for victims of sexual assaults to fully process and understand what happened to them,” he said. “Seeking justice sometimes requires us to reconsider or reopen cases when we are provided with additional evidence.”

Doe's attorney, Thomas P. Giuffra, has disputed Van Houten's characterization of her original statement and criticized authorities' handling of the initial investigation.

Giuffra told ABC News that authorities were provided in 2024 with messages from a Snapchat group chat that he described as critical evidence. Van Houten said the group chat included in the civil complaint was not provided to his office.

Cornell said Monday that it supports the district attorney's decision to give Doe an opportunity to have her account heard by a criminal grand jury.

The university also defended its handling of the case, saying its months-long Title IX investigation resulted in a range of sanctions, including suspensions and expulsions.

“Any suggestion that the University did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false,” Cornell said in the statement.

Cornell also disputed claims that students involved received only minimal punishment, saying none of those charged were offered an opportunity to write essays as the sole consequence of their involvement. The university said the Chi Phi chapter was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus.

纽约州重启了一起涉及一名韩国女学生的康奈尔大学性侵案的刑事调查。汤普金斯县地方检察官马修·范·豪顿表示，在审查了民事诉讼并与简·多伊及其律师会面后，他的办公室正在重新考虑是否对七名康奈尔大学现任和前任学生提起诉讼。康奈尔大学表示支持将多伊的陈述提交大陪审团审理的决定。

本月，一名化名为 Jane Doe 的前康奈尔大学学生对七名现任和前康奈尔大学学生提起民事诉讼。

Doe 声称，2024 年 10 月，她在 Chi Phi 兄弟会的会所内被多名成员下药并遭到性侵犯。

范豪顿表示，他的办公室已指派一名高级检察官准备此案，以便提交给汤普金斯县大陪审团。

地方检察官表示，Doe 在 2024 年向康奈尔大学警方提供的证词与民事诉讼中的指控有很大不同。

康奈尔大学表示，经过数月的第九条修正案调查，他们采取了包括停学和开除在内的制裁措施，Chi Phi 分会于 2024 年关闭，并且仍然被禁止进入校园。

发布于2026年9月29日凌晨2:07（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年9月29日凌晨4:20（韩国标准时间）

2024年2月2日，人们走在纽约州伊萨卡市康奈尔大学校园内。（美联社-韩联社）

西雅图——一名韩国学生被列为康奈尔大学性侵案七名被告之一，纽约检察官正在重新调查这起2024年的案件，该学生因此面临新的审查。

温斯顿·李（Winston Lee）被广泛认为是韩国公民，他是本月由一名化名简·多伊（Jane Doe）的前康奈尔大学学生提起的民事诉讼中被指控的七名现任和前任学生之一。简·多伊声称，2024年10月，她在Chi Phi兄弟会的会所遭到多名成员下药和性侵犯。

最初的警方调查后并未提出刑事指控，但汤普金斯县地方检察官马修·范·豪顿周一表示，他的办公室已经开始重新考虑是否应该提出指控。

范·豪顿在一份声明中表示：“社区要求我重新考虑是否对这七名兄弟会成员提起刑事诉讼。我已经启动了这项工作，首先是与简·多伊及其律师进行了沟通。”

范豪顿表示，他的办公室打算在确定是否需要提出指控以及提出何种指控后，将此案提交给大陪审团。

他说：“大陪审团将能够考虑简·多伊的证词，以及民事诉讼中提出的任何新证据。”

地方检察官已指派一名资深检察官准备此案，以便提交给汤普金斯县大陪审团。

范豪顿还解释了为什么在最初的警方调查之后没有提起刑事诉讼，称 Doe 在 2024 年向康奈尔大学警方提供的证词与民事诉讼中的指控有很大不同。

他说，他的办公室依赖于康奈尔大学警方进行的调查，而不是进行自己的平行调查。

范豪顿承认，性侵受害者可能需要时间来充分消化发生在他们身上的事情，新的证据可能需要重新考虑之前的决定。

他说：“我明白，性侵受害者需要多年的治疗和疗愈才能完全消化和理解自己所经历的一切。寻求正义有时需要我们在获得新证据时重新考虑或重启案件。”

Doe 的律师 Thomas P. Giuffra 对 Van Houten 对其最初陈述的描述提出异议，并批评了当局对最初调查的处理方式。

吉弗拉告诉美国广播公司新闻网，当局在2024年收到了一份Snapchat群聊信息，他称这些信息是关键证据。范豪顿则表示，民事诉讼中提到的那份群聊信息并未提供给他的办公室。

康奈尔大学周一表示，它支持地方检察官的决定，即给予约翰·多伊一个机会，让她向刑事大陪审团陈述案情。

该大学还为其处理此案的方式辩护，称其历时数月的第九条修正案调查导致了一系列制裁，包括停学和开除。

康奈尔大学在声明中表示：“任何关于大学没有对涉事人员施加相应惩罚的说法都是错误的。”

康奈尔大学还反驳了有关涉事学生仅受到轻微处罚的说法，称所有被指控的学生都没有因为参与此事而被要求撰写论文。该大学表示，Chi Phi兄弟会分会已于2024年关闭，并且仍然禁止其成员进入校园。