Stories / Student Safety
Quran destroyed in Hayden Library's interfaith space; man arrested after returning
In December 2021, a man caused significant damage in the interfaith reflection area of Hayden Library on the Tempe campus, and an ASU Police spokesman said a Quran was damaged "beyond repair." The man allegedly came back the next day and caused more damage. Library staff called police while he was still inside, and officers arrested Wesley Waggoner, 37, there. He was charged with criminal damage and possession of drug paraphernalia, and he had two outstanding warrants.
Before the arrest, ASU's Muslim Students Association called the damage a hate crime, and CAIR-Arizona urged prosecutors to pursue hate crime charges. Arizona has no separate hate crime charge, but prejudice can be treated as an aggravating factor at sentencing. The charges are allegations; KTAR did not say whether Waggoner was an ASU student.
ASU's side / contextASU Police Chief Michael Thompson said there is "no room or tolerance at ASU" for this behavior and that police were still investigating the motive. ASU said more charges could follow.
