Westlake wedding banquet fight draws large police response; footage released

WESTLAKE, Ohio (WJW) – A wild fight broke out during a wedding celebration at a local banquet facility on Friday night, prompting a large response by law enforcement.

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While alcohol is often blamed for wedding night brawls, Westlake police said in this case the fight was sparked by a history of hostilities between two families.

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Officers began gathering statements and learned that alcohol was not a factor in the fight, but bad blood between two families played a major role.

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Investigators said a key piece of evidence was a video clip that shows a chair being thrown and several men chasing after a wedding guest at the La Centre Banquet Facility on Detroit Road.

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Investigators said surveillance video from La Centre shows a large group of people pouring out of the building, where the fight escalated between two groups of men.

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The fight was still going on when officers arrived.

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After separating the combatants, they called for paramedics to attend to guests who were injured in the melee.

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Investigators later determined that the violence was set into motion by the presence of a Cleveland man who they said violated a temporary protection order by showing up at the celebration.

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“Under the law, if you see this person, even if you’re there accidentally at the same time, you have to leave. It is your responsibility to leave. This person chose not to leave,” Vogel said.

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On the video, wedding guests are heard shouting, “oh my God, oh my God,” as the men ran through the banquet hall.

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Police said 47-year-old Ali Wahdan was arrested and charged with violating the court order that had been granted by a judge to protect members of a family attending the wedding.

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Detectives said another guest, 46-year-old Raed Mahmoud Sulaiman of Dearborn Heights, Michigan, was also arrested and charged with assault, inducing panic and tampering with evidence for allegedly threatening other attendees with an unusual weapon that he discarded when police arrived.

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Investigators said a third man, identified as 48-year-old Abdallah Wahdan of Westlake, was charged with aggravated menacing for allegedly threatening to harm other guests at the wedding.

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Police said once order was restored, the wedding celebration continued without any further interruptions.

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The charges against the three suspects are being filed in Rocky River Municipal Court.

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Police are recommending that the defendants have no contact with any of the alleged victims.

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Westlake police received multiple 911 calls about 8:50 p.m. Aug. 21 reporting a large fight at the facility at Detroit and Columbia roads. Officers arrived to find numerous people outside, with some still involved in physical and verbal confrontations, according to police.

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Westlake belongs to a regional mutual aid framework established in 1971 by the Westshore Council of Governments, which allows police departments in Bay Village, Fairview Park, Rocky River, Lakewood, North Olmsted, and Westlake to pool officers and resources for civil disturbances and emergencies, according to the City of Fairview Park.

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Westlake's own police force is relatively small for a city its size — the department operates out of headquarters at 27300 Hilliard Boulevard with 54 sworn officers covering more than 31,000 residents across 16 square miles, according to Discover Policing.

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The 911 calls that triggered the response were likely funneled through the Westshore Central Dispatch Center, known as WestCom, a consolidated dispatch hub established in 2006 and hosted at St. John Medical Center in Westlake that serves Westlake, Bay Village, Fairview Park, Rocky River, and North Ridgeville.

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That consolidated system is what allowed emergency calls from the venue to reach multiple municipal police departments at once, rather than routing solely through Westlake's own dispatchers.

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Ohio's inducing panic statute applies when someone causes public alarm or serious inconvenience through reckless conduct, while assault under Ohio Revised Code Section 2903.13 is a first-degree misdemeanor carrying up to 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

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Under Ohio Revised Code Section 2919.27, a protection-order violation can escalate to a third-degree felony if it happens alongside another felony offense or if the person has multiple prior violations, though it isn't yet clear whether either circumstance applies here.

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Ohio's inducing panic statute applies when someone causes public alarm or serious inconvenience through reckless conduct, while assault under Ohio Revised Code Section 2903.13 is a first-degree misdemeanor carrying up to 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

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La Centre, the venue where the brawl unfolded, is a large family-owned event center at 25777 Detroit Road that opened in 2003 and includes two ballrooms capable of seating up to 800 banquet guests or hosting as many as 1,500 conference attendees.

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Ohio law defines aggravated menacing as knowingly causing someone to believe the offender will cause serious physical harm to them, their property, or their immediate family, and it's typically charged as a first-degree misdemeanor.

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It remains unclear whether further arrests or charges will follow as that review continues.

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Westlake City Council approved a development plan addition for the La Centre complex last month as part of ongoing site modifications at the property, according to the City of Westlake.

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