An incident occurred at an Ohio wedding reception on Friday night when a group of brothers allegedly attacked a guest, leading to a brawl between two families known for their animosity. The altercation took place at approximately 8:50 p.m. at the La Centre Banquet Facility in Westlake, Ohio, located 14 miles west of Cleveland.
According to a witness, four brothers entered the reception and began to fight with attendees. One of the alleged assailants, identified as Raed Mahmoud Sulaiman, reportedly armed himself with a butter knife from a place setting and threatened guests. Video footage obtained by local news outlets shows the chaos that ensued as attendees attempted to escape the situation.
Westlake Police Captain Jerry Vogel stated that independent witnesses reported seeing injuries, confirming that violence had erupted at the event. As the situation escalated, one attendee threw a chair at Sulaiman. Many guests fled the banquet hall into the parking lot, where police officers arrived to manage the scene.
Sulaiman, 46, was arrested and charged with assault, inducing panic, and tampering with evidence after allegedly discarding the butter knife before police arrived. Two other individuals, Ali Wahdan, 47, and Abdallah Wahdan, 48, were also charged for their involvement in the incident. Ali Wahdan faces charges for violating a court order, while Abdallah Wahdan is accused of threatening guests and charged with aggravated menacing.
Captain Vogel advised future attendees to avoid disrupting celebrations, stating, "Don’t spoil someone else’s wedding." He noted that the incident would overshadow the positive aspects of the event.