Syria Event Protester Threw Shoe, Hit Cop, Police Say

A Whitehall Township man threw a shoe at people on stage, then hit a police officer who tried to arrest him during a forum on the crisis in Syria at Lehigh University’s Zoellner Arts Center on Monday night, according to court papers.

Aziz W. Wehbey, 41, of Peachtree Circle, was part of a group of people who were, according to Lehigh University Police, “yelling and disrupting” the event, which included a full day of panel discussions on the “global and regional implications of the Syrian crisis.”

Wehbey was born in Syria, according to the arrest documents.

According to a schedule sent in an email promoting the event, speakers hailed from a number of countries in and out of the region to discuss conditions inside the country and the concerns of neighbors and other interested parties.

Police responded to Zoellner at about 8:30 p.m., which would have been during a dinner that featured remarks from Robin Wright of the U.S. Institute of Peace and Hisham Melhem of the al-Arabiya news channel.

Police began to escort the “disorderly” people from Zoellner when an officer inside Baker Hall watched as Wehbey allegedly threw a shoe and hit two speakers on stage, the arrest affidavit said.

Lt. Rich McGarr, the arresting officer, wrote in the affidavit that he joined in with a group of Lehigh officers who tried to arrest Wehbey, who resisted. During the struggle, Wehbey “violently threw his elbow” at McGarr, causing him to fall to the ground, the affidavit says.

“Officers had to use substantial force” to arrest Wehbey, McGarr wrote.

Wehbey is charged with aggravated assault, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, disrupting a meeting or procession and three counts of harassment. He was arraigned Wednesday in front of District Judge Nancy Matos-Gonzalez and released on $100,000 unsecured bail.