The heavyweight crew member who was hospitalized Saturday night with severe facial injuries was released yesterday, but those close to him said he has no recollection of the incident that caused his injuries.

Malcolm F. Howard ’05, who was found lying on the ground at the corner of JFK St. and Memorial Drive around 11 p.m. Saturday night, returned to Currier House yesterday after a two-night stay at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

Howard was unavailable for comment yesterday but roommate David J. Bowen ’05 said he was recovering and well.

On Sunday, a Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) spokesperson’s initial statement was that there would be no further investigation of the incident. But yesterday HUPD spokesperson Steven G. Catalano said that an inquiry into the circumstances behind Howard’s injuries is in fact ongoing.

Those circumstances, however, remain sketchy.

Both Bowen and Currier House Senior Tutor Carole A. S. Mandryk said Howard has no memories of the Saturday night incident.

On Sunday, Crew Coach Harry Parker said that Howard was likely “hit in some manner” and raised the question of whether Howard was in fact assaulted.

Yesterday, Mandryk confirmed that assault was “definitely a possibility.”

Teammates largely declined to comment, saying that they lacked first-hand knowledge of the incident and that they did not want to interfere with the police investigation.

Howard’s injuries occurred during a charity auction at the Weld Boathouse with rowers from the Harvard and Northeastern crew teams.

At some point, Howard left the auction.

Teammates said that there were no Harvard eyewitnesses to the events that followed. Men’s Crew Captain Michael J. Skey ’03 said yesterday that witnesses from Northeastern may have been present.

In the absence of concrete detail, rumors circulated among rowers yesterday.

Several people present at the auction suggested that Howard was somehow involved in an altercation with one or more students from Northeastern. But Catalano said he could not comment on the veracity of these claims.

Skey said he expected Howard would be able to return to rowing with the team later in the season.

—Staff writer Jenifer L. Steinhardt can be reached at steinhar@fas.harvard.edu.