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Update: This article has been corrected to indicate that Dr. Stuart Zweibel wasn't waiting in line. He was waiting for 15 minutes to have popcorn remade after his family found the the previous batch inedible, he said.
STAMFORD, Conn. A well-known Westchester County doctor arrested in Stamford Wednesday night and charged with stealing candy at a movie theater admits he took the candy, but insists he didn't steal it.
Dr. Stuart Zweibel, 59, of Waccabuc, N.Y., was arrested shortly before 8:30 p.m. at Bow Tie Cinemas, 101 Broadway, and charged with sixth-degree larceny, according to Police Capt. Bill Mullin. Zweibel has been named a top dermatologic surgeon by magazines in New York and Westchester.
Mullin said Zweibel was released an hour after posting a $2,500 cash bond. He is due in Stamford Superior Court July 27 at 10 a.m.
Mullin said Zweibel reached behind the counter on his way to see "The Green Lantern" and took a $4.50 box of crunchy pretzel M&Ms before running into the movie.
But Zweibel, in a telephone interview from his Scarsdale office Thursday afternoon, said the theater manager and police have "grossly distorted" the facts.
Zweibel said he took the candy only after waiting on line for 15 minutes for popcorn that was "drenched in salt."
"They were making me miss the movie. I couldn't get service," Zweibel said. "I took the candy because the service became ridiculous and she [the counter clerk] was making me miss the movie."
He said, "This all happened as a result of a customer dispute that was never resolved. Both the [theater] manager and police absolutely over-reacted. I was at the theater for a pleasant night out with my wife and son, and all of a sudden four police officers were dragging me out of a darkened theater and pushed me to the ground. I further injured my left foot that I'm having surgery on next week. This is a gross distortion that's ruining my reputation."
Police say otherwise.
"The theater manager [Kristina Aolston] called us to report the theft, and it was confirmed by a surveillance camera," Mullin said. "After he [Zweibel] was arrested, he offered to pay for the candy, but the theft had already occurred."
Mullin said Zweibel, a dermatologic surgeon at Westchester Health Associates who specializes in skin cancer, laser surgery and cosmetic surgery, was "positively identified" by the candy counter clerk as the man who took the candy.
Police said when Zweibel was first approached he said he "didn't understand" what was happening. Police say the doctor initially refused to leave with officers. Then, while officers escorted him out, Zweibel fell and screamed, police said.
Police said Zweibel also stated he was a surgeon "for the past 40 [expletive] years," and asked them not to touch him.
Zweibel strongly denies that account.
"I've been a surgeon for 23 years, and never would have said 40 years. That proves they are making things up," Zweibel said.
Whose account of this story do you believe? Leave a comment below.
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