Richmond police said on Sunday that they are investigating the death of a Virginia Commonwealth University student in an off-campus housing this weekend. Adam Oakes, 19, was found unanswered by officers called to the residence around 9:15 am on Saturday. He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to a police press release.
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Oakes’ family told CBS affiliate WTVR-TV that he had just received an offer to join the Delta Chi fraternity. The family said alcohol consumption was involved in death and that Oakes was blindfolded at one point.
“I’m sorry, he just couldn’t do it. I don’t think he could take it,” said Courtney White, Oakes’s cousin. “He ended up falling on a tree, hitting his head on a tree. We don’t know if he passed out or was unconscious. We are not sure how he ended up on the couch.”
The VCU police also helped with the investigation. The coroner will determine how Oakes died, Richmond police said.
“This is a tragic loss for Adam’s family and members of our community,” VCU said in a statement on Sunday.
In the same social media statement, VCU said it suspended the Delta Chi fraternity. The national fraternity office also announced that it has suspended the VCU chapter, the media reported.
A school spokesman declined to comment on whether Oakes, who is from Loudoun County, was a member of the fraternity. Alec Cardullo-Munoz, identified by WRIC-TV as Oakes’ roommate, said Oakes had received an offer from the fraternity.
“He was such a good kid,” Oakes’ father Eric Oakes told WTVR. “He just wanted to be accepted and wanted to be friends with people.”
A GoFundMe was established to help the family with funeral expenses.