An ASU student suspected of assaulting and choking a 19-year-old man until he lost consciousness is set to appear in court Tuesday.
The suspect, 20-year-old Andre Zargar, was arrested on suspicion of two counts of aggravated assault and one count of kidnapping at his residence on the morning of Oct. 5, Tempe police Sgt. Scott Smith said.
One of the assault charges stemmed from an incident in August.
Zargar, a biological sciences and pre-dental sophomore, said he hosted a birthday party on Oct. 4 at his residence on the 6000 block of South Hazelton Lane.
Police were dispatched to the residence after a 911 caller reported a fight in the street, Smith said.
When officers arrived, there was no fight in progress nor evidence of an altercation, but a large party was taking place, he said.
“People began leaving frantically when the officers approached the house,” he said. “Several minors were arrested for having consumed alcohol.”
Smith said the officers knocked on the front door, but there was no answer.
People continued to leave the residence out the back door and by jumping over the fence when the officers heard a strange sound, like a muffled yell, Scott said.
While they waited for entry to the home, friends of the 19-year-old victim approached the officers to say they believed he had been assaulted and was being held against his will.
Though no one would answer the door, the officers saw the blinds moving and became concerned about the safety and welfare of those inside, Smith said.
Upon eventually gaining entry, police found the victim, whose name was not released, unconscious on the floor of an upstairs bathroom with severe facial trauma, Smith said.
The officers alerted the Tempe Fire Department. As a firefighter wheeled the victim out of the home on a stretcher, he reportedly identified Zargar as one of the assailants.
The victim was transported to the hospital; his condition is unknown.
Zargar was arrested later that morning, Smith said.
Though the investigation is still ongoing, police believe the victim was upstairs looking for a bathroom to tend to a scrape on his head after an accidental fall.
Unfamiliar with the house, the victim likely opened several doors as he searched for the bathroom, Smith said. A group of men exited one room and began a verbal argument with him.
Police do not know what prompted the argument, Smith said.
The argument escalated into physical assault and proceeded into the bathroom where Zargar is suspected of choking the suspect until he temporarily lost consciousness and then holding him against his will for several hours, police reported.
Police believe the incident occurred while the officers were waiting at the front door, Smith said.
The victim realized that police were on the scene and attempted to yell for help when he was choked until he became unconscious a second time, Smith said.
Smith said this was the strange sound the officers heard: the victim crying for help.
Zargar’s second aggravated-assault charge stemmed from an incident on Aug. 4 on the 1800 block of East Loma Vista Drive.
Police believe Zargar exited a moving vehicle and punched a man in the face, causing him to lose several teeth.
“This incident lead to a probable cause of arrest for [that] case,” he said.
Zargar told The State Press his criminal background includes “only a few minor consumptions of alcohol.”
He was transported to the Tempe City Jail and held to see a judge.
“I spent my birthday in jail,” Zargar said. His 20th birthday was Oct. 6.
“I can tell you that most of the charges will be dropped because it’s a huge misunderstanding,” he said.
Zargar would not comment further as advised by his lawyer.
Reach the reporter at tessa.muggeridge@asu.edu.
