Ohio State released a statement Friday regarding an alleged rape that occurred in Steubenville, Ohio, a town of about 18,000.
Steubenville, which is located just less than 200 miles from Columbus, finds itself in the national spotlight after two 16-year-old Steubenville High School football players, Ma’lik Richmond and Trent Mays, were charged with raping a 16-year-old girl at a string of parties in August.
“Sexual assault is a terrible act of aggression and violence, and our hearts go out to all victims,” the statement reads. “The situation in Steubenville is particularly disturbing, and our thoughts are with those affected.”
In particular, OSU’s release comes after a video taken on the night of those parties started to make its way around the Internet Wednesday.
The video, which can be found under different names on YouTube, features Michael Nodianos, a Steubenville High School graduate and former OSU student, talking and laughing about the alleged rape for more than 12 minutes amid a group huddled in what appears to be a living room.
Nodianos, who has not been accused or charged of any crimes, could not be found on “Find People,” OSU’s staff, faculty and student directory, Friday, though such information (his name, university email address and major) was accessible Thursday.
Nodianos did not respond to The Lantern‘s request for comment.
While the university cites that it is “not at liberty to comment” because of Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) regulations, the school confirmed through its statement that “the student in question” was in attendance at the university “only through Dec. 12.”
According to “Find People,” Nodianos was an electrical and computer engineering major.
Nodianos, a former Big Red baseball player, according to a nearly 6,000-word story in the New York Times, opens the video by making “she’s deader than” analogies regarding the alleged victim, who did not die, but was reportedly unconscious during the alleged rapes.
According to the Times, Richmond and Mays are under house arrest and awaiting a trial that has been set for Feb. 13.
