University of Missouri assistant professor Youssif Zaghwani Omar was arrested after an altercation at a high school in Columbia, Missouri, where he physically attacked a 14-year-old girl for going to school without wearing a hijab, according to police.
The girl, who was reported as being Omar’s relative, was attending Hickman High School in Columbia on November 24 when the Libyan-born Omar arrived at about 3 PM and allegedly confronted the girl for not wearing the traditional Muslim head covering in public.
According to the Columbia Daily Tribune, Omar grabbed the girl “very violently by the hair,” then pulled her outside of the class and down a flight of stairs.
Omar was reportedly seen slapping the girl’s face as he pulled her by the hair into his car outside the school.
The following day, police arrested the Missouri professor at his home on felony charges of child abuse. He was later released from the Boone County Jail after posting a $4,500 bond.
A LinkedIn profile lists Youssif Omar as an assistant professor at the University of Missouri, Columbia and “manager of Artifacts Journal” at the University bookstore. The profile also says he was the head of the English department at the University of Benghazi, Wahat Branch, between 2003-2007.
Omar’s Facebook page says he is married and originally from Benghazi, Libya. His photos show only a younger, pre-teen girl and a young boy–presumably his own children.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com
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