Authorities: Glendale Heights village president pushed police chief
Already charged with disorderly conduct, Glendale Heights Village President Chodri Khokhar is facing more legal trouble.
Authorities have now charged the first-term village president with misdemeanor battery for allegedly pushing the town’s police chief.
According to the charge, Khokhar shoved Glendale Heights Police Chief George Pappas with both hands as Pappas stood in front of him on Oct. 25.
The misdemeanor battery charge was added Friday to Khokhar’s disorderly conduct case, in which he is accused of making a false report to police.
Khokhar applied for pretrial diversion on the disorderly conduct charge but was denied, his attorney, Scott Marquardt, told Judge Daniel Guerin.
Khokhar’s next court date is Feb. 23. He remains free pretrial.
The charging document does not detail the circumstances of the alleged event. Glendale Heights Acting Village Administrator Douglas Flint said no police report was made, and the village asked the DuPage County state’s attorney’s office to investigate the matter.
Paul Darrah, spokesman for the state’s attorney’s office, declined to give details about the allegation, including where it happened and if any other people were present. Darrah said Illinois Supreme Court rules prohibit him or prosecutors from disclosing anything that was not said or proffered in court.
Khokhar declined to comment.
“We are looking forward to finding out more information,” Marquardt said Friday afternoon, adding that he did not know any details. He said he was informed Thursday that the charge was coming.
In the disorderly conduct charges, Khokhar is accused of reporting to two police officers in April and May that village Trustee Mohammad Siddiqi had threatened to bite him. He filed the reports knowing there were "no reasonable grounds for believing that the offense had been committed," according to the grand jury indictment.
A Glendale Heights police report alleged that after the April 20 village board meeting, he and Siddiqi were in a hallway between the council chamber and the village president's office.
Khokhar told police that Siddiqi said, in Urdu, "Stop doing this. If not, I will bite you."
But a videotape showed Siddiqi and another trustee walking together, followed by Khokhar, and Siddiqi leaving the building. The report says it does not appear Siddiqi and Khokhar said anything to each other.
Khokhar sued Siddiqi in 2023, claiming Siddiqi had defamed him, harassed him and committed civil conspiracy regarding a contract for operating the village’s cricket fields. The case was dismissed.
In addition, Khokhar sought an emergency order of protection against Siddiqi in 2023, alleging the trustee had harassed him with critical emails. The order was denied.
In August, the village board asked Khokhar to resign due to the disorderly conduct charges.
Khokhar was elected in April 2021. His term expires in April 2025.