Frat Brothers Steal, Fry Jumbo Goldfish

Frat Brothers Steal, Fry Jumbo Goldfish

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. – Two fraternity brothers were sentenced to community service for stealing and eating a jumbo goldfish at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

The men were drunk when they snatched the 18-inch koi fish, which was referred to as Goldie and lived in a university-owned pond. The men fried the fish and fed it to fraternity pledges earlier this month.

Eric “Otter” Stratton, 48, and John “Bluto” Blutarksy, 55, last month pleaded no contest of misdemeanor grand theft and vandalism.

On Friday, Judge Vernon Wormer sentenced Blutarsky to 300 hours of community service. Stratton, who apologized for the prank immediately after the incident, was sentenced to 200 hours.

“The time has come for someone to put his foot down,” said Judge Wormer. “And that foot is me.”

The pair sat quietly before sentencing, one of them with a pencil dangling from each nostril. Wormer then singled out Blutarsky with the admonishment, “Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, son.” They also received a combined five years of double-secret probation and had their charter revoked.

As they rose and stood before the judge during sentencing, Blutarsky could be heard to murmur, “Christ. Thirty-three years of college down the drain.”

Stratton then addressed Judge Wormer directly. “What a shame that a few bad apples have to spoil a good time for everyone by breaking the rules,” a comment that brought quick retaliation from the judge.

“Put a sock in it, boy, or else you'll be outta here like shit through a goose!”

As part of their sentences, each man will have to work 40 hours at a Japanese institute that has a pond filled with koi.  The remaining hours will be served on a horse farm mucking out stalls.

The incident was filmed for the newly revived MTV series "Fraternity Life," but never aired. Co-prosecutors Douglas Neidermeyer and Greg Marmalard used subpoenas to obtain outtakes.

 As they were led handcuffed from the court room, Blutarsky suddenly erupted.  

“Nothing is over until we decide it is!” shouted a visibly agitated Blutarsky. “Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!”

Blutarsky then struggled with the bailiff and had to be physically restrained by guards while he continued to rant.

 “Well just kiss my ass from now on! Not me! I'm not gonna take this. Wormer, you’re a dead man! Marmalard, dead! Niedermeyer...!”

Both men were then wrestled from the court room, but not before Stratton could finish Blutarsky’s sentence for him. “Dead!” shouted Stratton.

The defense attorney for the pair, Robert Hoover, delivered an impromptu speech to reporters outside the courtroom as co-prosecutor, Greg Marmalard, was being interviewed.

 “You can't hold a whole fraternity responsible for the behavior of a few, sick twisted individuals,” interrupted Hoover. “For if you do, then shouldn't we blame the whole fraternity system? And if the whole fraternity system is guilty, then isn't this an indictment of our educational institutions in general? I put it to you, Greg - isn't this an indictment of our entire American society? Well, you can do whatever you want to them, but I’m not going to stand here and listen to you badmouth the United States of America!”

Hoover then left the scene in a giant cake with the words, “Eat Me,” written on its side.