Cornell 7 Bombshell: Frat Bro Claims Accuser 'Sodomized' Him While He Was Incapacitated and School Ignored His Plea for Help

The Cornell 7 case has taken a new turn after fraternity member Matthew Ingalls claimed he was sexually assaulted while incapacitated and accused Cornell University of failing to inform him of his rights under the university's procedures for sexual-assault cases.

Ingalls, one of seven Chi Phi fraternity members accused by a former Cornell student identified in court filings as Jane Doe, made the claim in a February 2025 email to a Cornell Title IX investigator, according to records reviewed by ABC News.

Ingalls wrote that Cornell had received information that he had allegedly been 'sodomized' by Doe while he was incapacitated, and accused the university of failing to alert him to his rights under its procedures for sexual-assault cases.

Ingalls Claims He Was Also a Sexual-Assault Victim

'You received information that I was sodomized by her while I was incapacitated back in November, and you never once thought to alert me of my rights under these procedures as a survivor of this assault?' Ingalls wrote, according to the records.

He accused Cornell of 'gender discrimination' and 'entrapment' and suggested that he could file his own complaint against Doe, according to the records.

The claim came after Doe alleged that Ingalls invited her to the Chi Phi house in Ithaca, New York, where the sexual encounter allegedly escalated as other fraternity members joined in.

Doe has said she was too intoxicated to consent. Ingalls later told investigators that he was also heavily intoxicated and suggested that he was the victim, creating two sharply conflicting accounts of what happened that night.

None of the seven men has been criminally charged, and all seven have denied wrongdoing.

The 'Consensual Orgy' Claim

The most startling evidence concerns what happened after Doe reported the alleged assault.

A female student told Cornell investigators that Chi Phi brothers had described the incident as a 'consensual orgy' and expressed concern that it would be bad for the fraternity's image. She also told investigators that Chi Phi had held a meeting 'to get all of the men on the same page' about what happened, according to records reviewed by ABC News.

Another account in the records disputed that description. A fraternity member told investigators there was no meeting specifically about the incident, saying it came up during a routine chapter meeting.

But messages between Ingalls and fraternity leadership show that members were discussing how to respond after the allegations emerged.

When the Chi Phi president asked Ingalls when he had last spoken to Doe, he replied: 'Yesterday ... what's the plan of action?' He then asked whether he should call her, adding: 'I don't think she would have reported this.'

'Free P—y' Messages Resurface

Other fraternity group chat messages have added further fuel to the controversy.

According to messages reviewed by ABC News and cited in reports about the case, one message referred to 'free p—y,' while another message attributed to Ingalls encouraged other fraternity members to 'come whip it out.'

The messages have become central to renewed scrutiny of the Cornell 7 investigation, particularly because they emerged alongside allegations that fraternity members were attempting to contain the fallout.

An anonymous caller had previously told Cornell police that fraternity leadership wanted a potential witness to remain quiet because 'the reputation of all involved and the frat would be ruined.'

Cornell 7 Investigation Reopens

Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten initially declined to bring criminal charges in 2024. His office reopened the investigation in late September 2026 following the filing of Doe's civil lawsuit and the emergence of additional information. On 1 October, Gov. Kathy Hochul appointed New York Attorney General Letitia James' office as special prosecutor to oversee the criminal investigation.

Cornell has also commissioned an independent review of its handling of the allegations, with former US Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates appointed to lead it. The review will examine the university's sexual-misconduct procedures, disciplinary process, campus police response and oversight of student organisations.

The Chi Phi chapter has been shut down, while Cornell has imposed disciplinary sanctions on students involved in the case. No criminal charges have been filed.

For now, Doe maintains that she was sexually assaulted while unable to consent, while Ingalls maintains that he was himself incapacitated and sexually assaulted. With the criminal investigation now under James and Cornell's institutional response under review by Yates, the disputed accounts and newly surfaced fraternity communications are facing their most serious scrutiny yet.