Rule 7 at this grammar website says:
Rule 7
Sometimes the subject is separated from the verb by words such as along with, as well as, besides, or not. Ignore these expressions when determining whether to use a singular or plural verb.
Examples:
The politician, along with the newsmen, is expected shortly.
Excitement, as well as nervousness, is the cause of her shaking.
So, it looks like we usually ignore these expressions: as well as, along with, besides, etc., when determining whether to use a singular or plural verb. But if the sentence is this:
Suresh along with his friends was arrested by the police as
they were involved in the sting operation.
It sounds a little bit eccentric to me. Should were be the verb followed by friends [plural]? Please clear my doubt.
Best Answer
I've thought about this for a bit and it seems to me that the sentence isn't right as it stands. I think you have three choices:
NOTE: Maybe we can say that "along with his friends" is synonymous with "as well as his friends", in which case, setting it off with commas requires a singular verb for the the first sentence.
You should also change that ambiguous as to an unambiguous because.