Sorority pledge Kristin High’s mom found chilling clue her daughter ‘drowned in hazing ritual’ after her death

ALPHA Kappa Alpha sorority pledge Kristin High’s mom has found a clue in her daughter’s car after she allegedly died during a hazing ritual.

The story of High’s death will be featured on the newest episode of A&E’s Houses of Horror: Secrets of College Greek Life.

2015 Los Angeles Times

2015 Los Angeles Times

On September 9, 2002, High, 22, and Kenitha Saafir, 24, drowned at Dockweiler State Beach in Los Angeles, California , per the Los Angeles Times in 2007.

“The world lost something special. Not just us,” High’s mother, Patricia Strong-Fargas, told Los Angeles Magazine in 2022.

High was not only a student but also the mother of a two-year-old son and a fiance to Holman Arthurs.

Police told Strong-Fargas her daughter died from an accidental drowning.

However, the grieving mother quickly filed a lawsuit against Alpha Kappa Alpha the same year arguing the two young women had allegedly died pledging the Black sorority.

PLEDGE TRAUMA

Strong-Fargas recalled her daughter’s experience pledging the sorority was much more intense than she realized.

During the weeks-long process, High was tired and often on edge, not talking about the experience.

“I didn’t worry as much as I should,” Strong-Fargas told The Los Angeles Times.

“There were things I missed because I trusted her. Kristin was always on top of things.”

High and Saafir, along with two other pledges, were allegedly forced to participate in nightly sessions until 1 am or 2 am, per the lawsuit, according to The Los Angeles Times.

Strong-Fargas also claimed her daughter was forced to cook, paint nails, and drive the other sorority members around, according to the lawsuit, per LA Weekly .

One night she came home covered in green paint and another time her hair and face were covered in mayonnaise, per LA Weekly.

High’s fiance gave a deposition claiming she was tied up, blindfolded, and led into the water at the same spot on the beach only days before her death, per LA Weekly.

On the night of their deaths, the pledges were at the beach doing calisthenics before being ordered to walk into the ocean, per the lawsuit.

Hazing Horror Stories

The U.S. Sun has covered many hazing horror stories.

• 19-year-old Antonio Tsialas died weeks after starting at Cornell University after attending a “dirty rush” event that involved excessive drinking
• Lofton Hazelwood, 18, died from alcohol posing and his family has worked together to pass a law to protect students from hazing
• Daniel Santulli was left blind and paralyzed after a fraternity hazing ritual went wrong

A large wave wiped out Saafir and High knew she couldn’t swim so she went in after her, the lawsuit stated.

However, the lawsuit is comprised of only information Strong-Fargas believes due to witness accounts collected by a private investigator.

The two surviving pledges allegedly wouldn’t speak to Strong-Fargas.

CHILLING FIND

When the other two pledges brought High’s car home the next day, Strong-Fargas realized something was off.

When she looked through her car, she realized High’s pledge journal was missing and numbers had been deleted from her phone, according to the lawsuit.

“They wanted to just drop the keys and run,” Strong-Fargas told The Los Angeles Times.

“These were girls who had spent hours at our home, who had eaten with my family, played with Kristin’s son.

“They were the only ones who could tell me what happened to my daughter. And they couldn’t even look at me in my face.”

Alpha Kappa Alpha leaders claimed they had no role in the two deaths from the beginning of the investigation.

The sorority’s chapter at California State University, Los Angeles had been suspended for hazing, so the pledging process wasn’t sanctioned and no criminal charges were filed against anyone.

Despite her best efforts, the lawsuit Strong-Fargas filed against Alpha Kappa Alpha was dismissed, according to UniCourt .

The U.S. Sun has contacted Strong-Fargas and Kenitha’s father Karim Saafir for comment.

How to watch Houses of Horror: Secrets of College Greek Life

Houses of Horror: Secrets of College Greek Life is released on A&E on Mondays at 9 pm.

You can stream episodes the next day.