Lighthouse Tavern and Sidetrack Grill owner Grayson “Chad” Snyder was arrested around 10:30 p.m. Friday at the Lighthouse Tavern on charges of selling and delivering cocaine, possession with intent to sell and deliver cocaine and attempt to violate the Controlled Substance Act by possessing the date rape drug GHB (gamma hydroxy butyrate).

Snyder, 35, was arrested about 15 minutes after a Pi Kappa Phi fraternity and Alpha Chi Omega sorority mixer began at Lighthouse that night.

Snyder attempted to trade cash and several grams of cocaine for 11 bottles of counterfeit GHB from an undercover officer. The officer traded fake GHB made by the State Bureau of Investigation lab to look and taste like the real drug. He was in possession of at least 3 grams of cocaine at the time of his arrest.

After the exchange of cocaine and GHB, six uniformed officers entered Lighthouse, located Snyder as he was leaving his office and arrested him based on an anticipatory warrant.

Elon town police, Burlington police department, Alamance County sheriff’s office, North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement and the SBI surrounded Lighthouse after the arranged deal. Officers wanted to arrest Snyder before the student mixer began to minimize the number of students at the bar, but because of an unspecified delay, officers did not respond until after 10:30 p.m.

The 20 to 30 students at the mixer thought the two SBI vehicles and more than five police cars present were meant to discourage underage drinking. But after seeing SBI officers with bulletproof vests and guns drawn, several students said they realized it was a more serious situation.

“The next thing I knew, three more cop cars came and a guy in a SBI bulletproof vest came and held a gun up,” senior Andrew Wilen said. “I was 4 feet from the guy. I felt like it was in my face. He yelled for everyone to leave and put their drinks down. It was confusion.”

Snyder’s arrest was the final step in a four-month investigation into the drug activity at Lighthouse. Town police received an anonymous tip in August about the possible use of GHB in a girl’s drink at Lighthouse. Town police then requested the assistance of SBI agents, who usually deal with drug-related investigations. Snyder has no prior history of drug-related charges.

“Narcotics are always an on-going investigation that we take very seriously,” said Capt. Sam Russell, assistant chief of Elon town police. “We hope for the best and investigate the worst. It’s sad to think about really, especially since it’s someone the students trusted and was quite popular on campus.”

Lighthouse, which Snyder has owned since 2005, is closed indefinitely at this point.

“It's such a shame that you have a nice place to go, and now we have to worry about things like that,” Elon Mayor Jerry Tolley said.

Sidetrack Grill will remain open for business despite Snyder’s arrest, his family said.

Snyder was an adjunct instructor of religious studies at Elon University from 2003 to 2005. As an adjunct professor, he only taught classes as needed by the religious studies department, which usually uses graduates from Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Snyder will no longer teach his scheduled class for spring semester. He graduated from Elon in 1996.

“This is so sad,” said Jeffrey Pugh, professor of religious studies and department chair. “It’s also very serious.”

Snyder was taken to the Alamance County Jail on Friday night under a $50,000 secured bond. His court date is set for the afternoon of Dec. 31. He had no comment at his initial hearing on Dec. 3.

Editor in Chief: Brittany Smith - 12/05/07