Five Baruch College students have been charged with homicide in the death of a student during a hazing ritual on a fraternity trip to the Poconos, authorities said Monday. 

Chun Hsien "Michael" Deng, 19, died in December 2013 after participating in the ritual in which he and other pledges were blindfolded, weighted down with backpacks full of sand and knocked over repeatedly while trying to walk, police said.

The five students are charged with criminal homicide, involuntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, hazing, hindering apprehension and criminal conspiracy.

Five other students were charged with assault as well as the conspiracy and hindering apprehension charges, and 27 more students were charged with hindering apprehension, hazing and conspiracy charges.  

After the announcement of the indictment Monday, Deng's family released a statement saying, "Michael was a wonderful, beloved young man, and in his honor the family will also continue pursuing its wrongful death case against the fraternity to cause it and other fraternities to change so that other parents will be spared the loss of a precious child." 

Hugh H. Mo, an attorney for one of the 37 students charged, said in a statement to NBC 4 New York that the "across-the-board charges against all the young men in the house and outside in the backyard is not justified nor provable."

"It is regrettable that the DA and the Grand Jury made no distinction as to the individual culpability of each of the young man who was present," Mo said, adding that 36 of the 37 students were "overcharged" in Deng's death. 

Congresswoman Grace Meng, a Democrat who represents the city's sixth district, is the sister of Andy Meng, the former Pi Delta Psi national president, and one of the students charged. 

She said in a statement Tuesday, "This young man's death was a terrible tragedy and our deepest condolences and prayers continue to go out to his family and friends. I love my brother very much and as his sister, I'll be here for him as he goes through the legal process." 

Deng was taken to the hospital by Pi Delta Psi fraternity brothers after suffering some kind of injury during the ritual. He had scratches on his hip, a cut on his wrist and bruising on his knees, in addition to massive head trauma. He had no drugs or alcohol in his system.

He died the next day of a head injury due to blunt force trauma, the coroner ruled.

According to a police affidavit, three students who first brought Deng to the hospital initially told police that the group was wrestling in the snow when the 19-year-old fell backwards and hit his head. The group said they brought him inside and laid him by the fire, but he did not wake up.

In later interviews, the story emerged that Deng was actually injured during a fraternity ritual.

After Deng died, the school and fraternity said the group had taken an unapproved trip. The national chapter severed its ties with the Baruch group, and revoked the memberships of its brothers for allegedly violating Pi Delta Psi's values and anti-hazing policy.

Mitchel Wallerstein, president of Baruch College, said in a statement that the school instituted a permanent ban of the fraternity in the wake of Deng's death and instituted a suspension of all pledging activities for campus Greek life organizations beginning in 2014.

"While we cannot comment on the disciplinary status of any individual student due to privacy requirements under federal law, Baruch conducted its own internal judicial review of students involved in this incident and brought disciplinary proceedings against all of them, except for those who voluntarily withdrew from Baruch College," Wallerstein said. "We owe it to Michael and his family to hold accountable those who were responsible for the senseless death of this promising young man."

Student Devon Ressner said on campus Monday she'd wondered over the past two years whether the case was swept under the rug. She said she's glad charges were filed.

"I think it's really important to send that message that this is completely unacceptable," she said.

Former student Aquiv Hussain said, "Whoever was directly involved should be behind bars because someone did pass away in this situation."