WQZS: Owner Reportedly Ill; Family Member of Victim Emails Judge

The owner of an embattled classic hits FM station licensed to southern Somerset County is reportedly hospitalized, and a family member of the victim in his criminal case is asking the administrative law judge to pull his license.

The website Radio Business Report stated on June 6th that WQZS owner Roger Wahl was hospitalized at a Conemaugh Health System facility. That’s according to Sam Coughenour, who has hosted a two-hour gospel program Sunday mornings on the station since 1996, and one of Wahl’s loyal supporters.

Coughenour said that Wahl had been hospitalized with kidney failure in the hospital’s intensive care unit. “He’s very, very, very, sick,” stated Coughenour. Wahl had also been recently hospitalized for back surgery.

Meanwhile, a five-page email dated June 29th was sent to administrative law judge Jane Halprin, who will ultimately decide the fate of the license that Wahl has held since the 1990s.

The email from Sarah Shaffer alleges that Wahl has not been forthcoming with the judge and the FCC regarding the character issues in question that could inhibit his fitness as an FCC licensee.

“You’ve asked for all the documentation from him, so where are the police reports that will have his statements on them telling exactly what he admitted doing?” wrote Shaffer. “There should be a police statement for him attempting to get her raped and also for back in 2017 when he was planning on putting her naked on a cross that had been erected on his property. Has anyone gotten those police reports yet?”

PBRTV.com is not releasing the relationship between Shaffer and the victim to protect her privacy.

Shaffer also alleged that Wahl’s previous statement in court documents about not being ‘computer savvy’ was false, and that Wahl’s jealousy towards the victim led to extreme behavior.

“Funny how he could get all the call records and text records off of the Verizon website when he was so jealous that he couldn’t think straight,” wrote Shaffer. “He told me and showed me the stack after he had printed them all out. He was so upset because of the amount of times (the victim) had texted or called a friend of theirs he just couldn’t stop.”

Shaffer further claimed that Wahl’s daughter, Wendy Sipple, is only involved in WQZS as a means for Wahl to keep control of the station.

“The only reason she is claiming that she wanted to get the station was so that he wouldn’t lose it and then it would be business as usual,” wrote Shaffer. “If Wendy wanted the radio station so bad, then how come she didn’t help him get all the paperwork together and get it all submitted to you and the FCC? I can’t imagine not helping my parent if they were going to lose their business by not making sure that everything was electronically submitted, that all the information requested was given, etc. Apparently she isn’t that worried about getting the business like she has claimed.”

Shaffer summed up that the WQZS license should not be allowed to remain in Wahl’s name nor be transferred to Sipple.

“The radio station license should not be allowed to continue under Mr. Wahl’s name, nor his daughter’s, said Shaffer in her closing. “They have broken the trust of too many people. It is truly a sorry mess.”