UPDATE: Iowa City Police formally charge one of two members with Harassment Wednesday
Hunter
12/08/21
One of the two former University of Iowa FIJI fraternity members accused of sexual assault has been formally charged by Iowa City police.
Court records show that a criminal complaint was filed by the department on Monday against 20-year-old Carson Steffen of North Liberty. An arrest warrant was issued Tuesday and served Wednesday morning.
Steffen says he’s not guilty and adds that he’s being defamed by the civil lawsuit filed by the victim.
The Press-Citizen reports that in court documents filed Monday, Steffen admits to having sexual activity with Makena Solberg, but argues that it was consensual.
In her lawsuit, Solberg alleges that Steffen and another member of the fraternity sexually assaulted her at a September 2020 party. The suit claims that the men planned and conspired to lure the woman into one of their bedrooms and sexually assaulted her while she was intoxicated, physically impaired and could not give consent. The reported assault was recorded, shared with members of the fraternity and became widely circulated.
The arrest report alleges that Steffen sent a photo of the victim engaged in a sex act with another male to multiple persons on Snapchat in the early morning hours of September 5th 2020. Solberg never gave consent to having the photo disseminated.
Steffen has been charged with 1st degree Harassment, an aggravated misdemeanor. A no-contact order was also requested.
Police carried out search warrants the month the incident occurred, but no criminal charges had been filed before today. That led to protests on campus this fall that caused thousands in property damage to the frat house.
The newspaper reports that Steffen is seeking a jury trial in the civil case. He has filed a countersuit, claiming that he’s being defamed by the false accusation. Steffen is asking for compensatory and punitive damages.
Solberg went public with her story in October; she is still a student at the University of Iowa. The two accused men were removed from FIJI last year and are no longer enrolled at the UI.
The other man involved in the alleged assault has yet to file a response.