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VIDEO: 1 charged after man dies amid Philly wedding reception brawl
212-621-1500Associated Press
The Associated Press
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By The Associated Press
Published: Monday, October 8, 2012, 7:42 p.m.
Updated: Monday, October 22, 2012
PHILADELPHIA — A man was charged in connection with a large brawl that broke out among people attending two wedding receptions in downtown Philadelphia during the weekend, police said on Monday.
The fight, which was caught on video and quickly spread online, happened early Sunday at a hotel in the Society Hill neighborhood and involved dozens of people in formal attire. A 57-year-old suffered a fatal heart attack outside the reception, police said, but authorities don't know whether he was involved in the fights.
One of the people involved, Matthew Sofka, 26, of Westfield, N.J., was charged with aggravated assault, simple assault and other counts in connection with the fight, said Lt. Raymond Evers, a Philadelphia police spokesman.
The investigation is continuing, and police expect more arrests in the future, Evers said. Evers said alcohol was involved.
The altercation was caught on video by Max Schultz, a 15-year-old from Camp Hill, who was in Philadelphia with his parents to see the historic sites and celebrate his birthday. Schultz said he was sleeping when noise from the fight awoke him.
He went to an atrium where he looked down on the fight, took out his cell phone and began recording it — later posting it on YouTube .
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