Messages May Have Been Sent Before Fatal Brawl

San Jose police are investigating four Internet messages, full of violent threats and profanity, that one of the fraternities involved in last month's deadly brawl may have sent to the other just hours before their midnight clash.

``everytime i see a fruit, im gonna stomp on him like the bitch that he is,'' warned the first message, posted anonymously on Pi Alpha Phi's Web-based guest book.

``you deserve to die. . . . you're going to get yours soon,'' reads the second.

The e-mail threats, two of which claim to be from rival fraternity Lambda Phi Epsilon, may offer a glimpse into the depth of the animosity between the two Asian-American fraternities, which erupted in a deadly rumble Jan. 22 at San Jose's Flickinger Park.

Police caution that it could be difficult to determine whether the e-mails are authentic or to trace them. But investigators are probing whether these and other messages on computers confiscated from fraternity members might lead them to witnesses or participants in the fight.

``They could be genuine, or they could be the work of a loyalist to one of the fraternities who wishes to advance their position on this whole incident,'' said Lt. Glenn McCourtie, the homicide detective in charge of the investigation.

An anonymous caller who identified himself as a Pi Alpha Phi member directed the Mercury News to the guest book on the fraternity's Web site, which was shut down after the clash. The battle, which involved knives and clubs, left four Lambdas seriously injured and Alam Kim, a 23-year-old art major, dead from a single stab wound to the heart.

The Mercury News was unable to reach members of either fraternity for comment.

A third note was signed Death Rho Lambdas: ``you think u sick now just cuz you threw a couple of sucker punches?'' It appears to refer to a pool hall fight between members of the rival San Jose State University fraternities that led to their fatal showdown.

``If you got balls, meet up ASAP,'' it continued. ``I want the ones who touched us. If yall had nothing to do with it, back off or we're coming after you too.''

Police note that savvy Web posters can mask their identity by routing messages to an electronic guest book through another server. San Jose police Sgt. John Savala, who works in the high-tech crimes unit, said a knowledgeable person could have posted the hostile messages after the fact and backdated them.

In fact, one taunting note on the Pi Alpha Phi site boasted: ``don't bother tracking this ip, i've already masked it, and put a worm in your server. your site's coming down in 5 days. good day to you.''

Guest book host sites, which often offer free or low-cost service, do not always keep a log of visitors because that would use up costly data storage space, Savala said.

While the brutal verbiage and menacing tone of the e-mails mimic the language of gang culture, university officials say they have found nothing to link the Greek organizations with wannabe gangsterism.

``Neither the university police department or the San Jose Police Department have any information, experience or indication that any of our fraternities are involved in street gangs or street gang activities,'' San Jose State University President Robert Caret wrote in an e-mail response to questions about oversight of the fraternities.

The school suspended Lambda Phi Epsilon in 1999 for a year for hazing pledges, including Kim. Last year, campus police called Kim a prime instigator in a fistfight between the Lambdas and another rival Asian fraternity -- Omega Xi Omicron -- which was handled confidentially by the university's judicial review system.

However, two experts on street gangs said all indications -- from the violent, challenging language to the rumble in the park -- suggest a strong gang-influenced dynamic.

``There are six reasons to be in a gang,'' said Steve Nawojczyk, a nationally recognized gang expert, ``identity, recognition, belonging, discipline, love and respect. All of those are the same reasons for being in a fraternity.'' In bygone days, he said, ``frat boys drove convertibles, went to sock hops and drank beer. Now you have people carrying Glocks,'' he said referring to a favorite gang handgun. Because police believe non-fraternity members were probably involved in the deadly fight, Nawojczyk said, ``it's amazing there were not firearms involved.''

Wes McBride, president of the California Gang Investigators Association, defines a gang as three or more people with common identifying signs, symbol or name who employ an atmosphere of fear and intimidation and engage in criminal activity.

``These fraternities pretty much meet those criteria,'' said McBride, co-author of the book ``Understanding Street Gangs.'' ``They meet a lot of the gang mannerisms, the name, definition and, according to these e-mails, they've got the talk down pretty good. The only thing that stops them from being a gang is that their primary objective is not crime. But then again, both are now involved in a terrible crime.''

The day after the brawl, the Pi guest book contained more harsh messages, but the tone was a sharp departure from the four that appear to have been sent earlier.

``You guys took a life. Hope you're proud,'' said one. And: ``you guys are a bunch of gutless people who killed and unarmed man. I hope you all get put into jail, murderers.''

Other messages read as if they came from disillusioned supporters.

``Was it worth it to have a life taken from this world . . . and for what? Your idiotic belief that you are the best? Well you are not, you WERE the best.''

And still others took the fraternity to task for acting like thugs.

``What is wrong with you guys? The Fraternity is not a gang . . . If you think the Fraternity is going to be your gang for life then go join a real gang. Waste your lives for a idiotic cause somewhere else. Do not tarnish the name of Pi Alpha Phi!''