Cops identify alleged wedding brawler
The one party goer who was arrested and held overnight by police after an all-out brawl at a Society Hill wedding has been identified as Matthew Sofka, 26, of Westfield, N.J.
Cops identify alleged wedding brawler
The one party goer who was arrested and held overnight by police after an all-out brawl at a Society Hill wedding this weekend has been identified as Matthew Sofka, 26, of Westfield, N.J.
On his Facebook page, Sofka says that he likes Bud Light and "The Hangover II." Sofka spent much of his Sunday recovering from his own hangover in a prison cell, according to police.
Sofka was charged with assault on police, inciting a riot and related offenses for his part in a massive melee involving two wedding parties and police early Sunday morning at the Society Hill Sheraton.
Two other men, both in their late 20s, were give summary citations for disorderly conduct. Their names have not been released.
A man reported to be the uncle of the bride died of a heart attack following the fight. It's unclear if he was involved in any of the altercations.
Hotel guests estimated that between 50 and 100 cops showed up to control 50 to 100 party goers from two separate weddings who were fighting each other and amongst themselves for unknown reasons. Police and hotel guests said the fights appeared to be fueled by alcohol.
Max Schultz, 15, of Camp Hill, captured part of the melee on a video he posted to YouTube which, as of this morning, had more than 532,000 views.
In the video, a police officer can be seen hitting Sofka three times with his baton. Sofka was then Tasered off camera, according to police.
It was an episode of Jersey Shore, Bridezilla, The Smoking Gun: Weddings Gone Bad 23, and Cops, rolled into one.— Cazptain Philadelphia- Sofka is not an Italian surname.— anon
- Not at all surprised that the guy being arrested is a Jersey tool.— bpp1999
- One of the wedding parties was from South Philly. Sorry to burst your bubbles.— CTI_Guy
- Alcohol was involved? We need tougher alcohol laws! (sarcasm)— cerberus413
- anutterindagutter....Yes, they do happen. Just because you haven't witnessed one doesn't mean they don't happen.— jabs69
- Philly - the City that's finally good at Something - "Notorious YouTube Videos." Party till you puke baby!— bad joe s
- Westfield is in North Jersey, Westville is in South Jersey.— onepercenter
- Says a lot about Society Hill's TIPS policy or lack of!— woodin
- From North Jersey. Favorite teams are the Giants and Rangers. There's your issue.— Matt
- Beer muscles and muscle heads..... Hope he and all learned something... no wait. They are good boys that a little to much to drink.... No, they are total idoits— UGHROLF
- Not defending Jersey here, but trash knows no geographic boundaries.— FletcherT
- Another moronic conversation on the Philly.com comment boards. Who cares where the guy was from. Just too bad he had to act out in our city instead of his hometown.— gho_matt
- Where did 50 to 100 cops come from? Really? Is that accurate? I thought we didn't have enough cops on the street?— boroughboy
- Once again n. jersey people reinforce the notion that south jersey should have seceded from that dumpster fire that is new jersey in the 80s— taxiron1
