Noah Lara

Introduction

Noah Lara, a 20-year-old student at Texas State University, is one of four Phi Delta Theta fraternity pledges arrested on misdemeanor hazing charges after police said the group forced an active member of their own fraternity into a pickup truck as part of what those involved described as “a tradition.” Arrested alongside Lara were Wyatt Carr, 18, William Oldner, 19, and Tyler Fogg, 18. The incident drew multiple calls to San Marcos police on the night of Tuesday, October 21, 2026, and was reported by the New York Post, San Antonio’s KSAT Investigates, and the campus newspaper The University Star.

Background Information

The four arrestees are pledges of the Texas Mu chapter of Phi Delta Theta at Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas; Lara, at 20, is the oldest of the group, while Fogg was identified in campus coverage as an 18-year-old finance freshman. The man police say was forced into the truck is an 18-year-old active member of the same fraternity, and court records indicate he was not physically hurt. The chapter’s national organization has been responding through its general headquarters since the arrests became public.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Charged, not convicted. The four pledges face Class B misdemeanor hazing charges that carry up to 180 days in jail and a $2,000 fine. The allegations against them are unproven, none has been tried, and each is presumed innocent.

According to San Marcos police, officers began receiving multiple calls at around 10:40 p.m. on Tuesday, October 21, reporting that several men were forcing another man into a blue pickup truck while he yelled to be let go. Russell Wilde, public safety communications specialist for the city of San Marcos, told KSAT and The University Star that the man forced into the truck had his mouth taped, according to an affidavit. Officers located the vehicle at the Arba Apartments on Aquarena Springs Drive and determined the incident involved members of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity at Texas State.

What turned the episode into criminal charges is what the participants reportedly said about it. “Those involved told officers the incident was a tradition,” Wilde said, and the affidavit states the group described the act as part of their initiation — the forced ride allegedly administered to an active member by the chapter’s own pledges. Lara, Carr, Oldner, and Fogg were subsequently arrested and booked; Hays County booking records show Lara was processed on October 21. Court records show the group was charged with hazing, a Class B misdemeanor under Texas law, and received a magistrate warning; a police spokesperson told the New York Post that a conviction could bring a $2,000 fine and/or up to 180 days in jail.

Public Reaction and Consequences

The institutional response arrived from both the university and the fraternity. Texas State said in a statement that it is “committed to maintaining social and ethical responsibility for everyone and does not tolerate hazing by any group or individual affiliated with the university,” adding that even willing “participation in hazing activities is against state law and university policy”; a spokesperson said disciplinary specifics could not be discussed due to federal privacy laws, and the university’s communications director told KSAT only that it “does not discuss matters of student discipline.” Phi Delta Theta’s general headquarters, through senior director of strategic communications Katelyn Ferguson, said it was aware of “an incident involving several students associated with the Texas Mu Chapter,” was “gathering information” and “working closely with the university and local law enforcement,” and “does not support or condone behavior that jeopardizes the safety of others.”

Current Status

All four pledges have been charged and released following magistrate warnings, and no court dates in Hays County had been publicly announced as of the latest reports. The victim was not hurt, per court records, and no additional charges had been filed against the four or against the chapter itself. Texas State has declined to say whether the pledges or the chapter face disciplinary suspension, and Phi Delta Theta has not announced any organizational action while it gathers information. None of the four has been publicly identified as making a statement, and no attorney information was included in the reporting.

Impact on Their Career/Life

The case lands amid a national fraternity reckoning: the arrests came the same month the University of Arizona suspended all Interfraternity Council chapter activities over reports of hazing and assault, West Virginia University cracked down on a house over alleged hazing, and fraternities nationwide have been under scrutiny following gang-rape accusations against Cornell fraternity brothers and the arrest of fourteen Penn State fraternity members on cocaine-dealing charges — against a backdrop the Post counts as 36 hazing-related deaths at US colleges since 2017. For Lara, an arrest and charging document now attach his name to a word — “tradition” — that Texas law treats as no defense at all: under the statute the university itself cited, even willing participation in hazing is a crime. All four remain presumed innocent of the charges.

Sources

• New York Post, “Texas State frat pledges face jail time after arrests for hazing,” October 23, 2026 — source
• KSAT Investigates (San Antonio), “Texas State fraternity pledges arrested for hazing ’tradition,’ San Marcos police say,” October 22, 2026 — source
• The University Star, “SMPD arrests 4 Texas State students for hazing,” October 22, 2026 — source