HANOVER, N.H. (AP) – Police now say their search of a Dartmouth College fraternity house that’s believed to have inspired the 1978 movie, “National Lampoon’s Animal House” did not uncover the evidence they were looking for.

Police Chief Nicholas Giaccone said the June 8 search led to two arrests for marijuana possession, but did not uncover anything to confirm the allegations that prompted the investigation. Giaccone, who would not discuss the focus of the inquiry, said the case is now closed.

John Engelman, alumni adviser for the Alpha Delta fraternity and president of the fraternity’s alumni corporation, said he was told by police Capt. Frank Moran that police were looking for a videotape, alleged to have been made several years ago, of a Dartmouth woman engaged in sex with a member of the fraternity.

Engelman said that, according to the woman’s account, the sex was consensual, while the videotaping was not.

“I’m not surprised that they didn’t find what they were looking for, because I was confident early on that what they were looking for didn’t exist,” Engelman said.

George Ostler, the attorney for the fraternity house, also said he understood that officers were searching the house for a video with sexual content.

Under New Hampshire law, videotaping a sex act without both parties consent is a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $2,000 or up to a year of jail time.

Giaccone would not comment on the case’s origins except to say that the investigation had begun in October of 2004 as the result of a complaint brought by a student.

All property taken from the house as part of the raid, including CDs, a computer tower and a laptop computer, has been returned, Giaccone said.

The police search led to two unrelated arrests. Fraternity members Kemper Pierce, 19, of Norwich, Vt., and Darnell Nance, 22, of Stoughton, Mass. have been charged with possessing marijuana, and are scheduled to be arraigned in September.

The police investigation drew widespread attention because the Alpha Delta fraternity house is believed to be the model for Dartmouth College alumnus Chris Miller when he wrote the screenplay for the Animal House movie.

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Information from: Lebanon Valley News, http://www.vnews.com

AP-ES-08-06-06 0757EDT