A former Truman State University student is being sued by the parents of two students who committed suicide at their fraternity, Alpha Kappa Lambda. The lawsuit states that Brandon Grossheim encouraged Alexander David Mullins, Joshua Michael Thomas, and three unnamed others by giving them “advice on how to commit suicide.” The deaths occurred during the 2016–17 academic year.
According to the Kansas City Star, Mullins had hanged himself in his room at the frat house and Thomas was found hanging in a storage closet. The third suicide was a member of the fraternity, while the fourth was someone who was not a student but was in their social circle. Grossheim is also linked to a death of an unnamed woman that is still under investigation.
Grossheim had access to all five suicide victims, including keys to their rooms or apartments. He was also the last person to talk to them before they died. WDAF-TV reports that Grossheim had found the bodies of three of the victims and handled two of them before police arrived. He also asked to see one of the bodies. There have been no criminal charges pressed against Grossheim in relation to the deaths.
The victims’ attorney, Nicole Gorovsky, said that Grossheim was known to have a fascination with death and told people that he “considered himself a superhero with the nickname ‘Peacemaker.’” According to Gorovsky, Grossheim said that he gave step-by-step directions to people on how to “deal with depression and do their own free will.”
Gorovsky said in a statement: “This situation had been swept under the rug. The University held a short symposium on suicide and the fraternity seemingly shrugged their shoulders and everyone went away quietly. But, no one told the public, parents or students on campus about the psychological manipulation that had been involved … that a fellow student and fraternity brother was a danger.”
