Dimona Family Protests Outside Police Station Demanding Reopened Death Probe
Family of the late Eldar Dayan protested outside the Dimona police station, demanding a renewed probe into his death. Dayan was found dead in August following a disappearance, and his relatives slammed severe police failures and investigative omissions.
Family members of the late Eldar Dayan from Dimona protested today outside the Dimona police station, demanding the reopening of the investigation into his death. Dayan was reported missing in mid-July after attempts to contact him failed. Conflicting reports reaching the police pointed to a series of incidents in which he was allegedly involved, until his body was discovered in early August in an advanced state of decomposition. The body was brought to the Abu Kabir Forensic Institute, but examiners were unable to precisely determine the cause of death.
Suspicions and Investigation Details
One of the suspicions raised is that he was injured during a brawl with several people at Yarkon Park, and as a result of the blows he sustained, collapsed and died. Before being declared missing, he managed to send a text message to his partner stating that he was on his way, but the two never met, and there was no sign of life from him until his body was located behind a gas station near the Yarkon Junction. Security camera footage from the station showed him entering shirtless. Items apparently belonging to him were found near the body.
His mother, who arrived at the scene, tried to hold onto the hope that it was not her son, but the family later realized it was indeed his body. Following an autopsy, he was laid to rest in Eilat, where some of his relatives reside. Two of his friends who were with him, Omri Peretz and Maxim Berberman, were questioned to understand what happened, and five young men were arrested on suspicion of involvement in harming him, but were released after several days of questioning.
Police Criticism and Unanswered Questions
The circumstances of Dayan's disappearance and death were investigated by three police units: the Dimona police, investigators from the Central District, and investigators from the Ramat HaSharon station. The police faced harsh criticism for the time that elapsed until the body was found, partly because it was discovered in an area where searches had already been conducted. Individuals questioned in the case, including those arrested, provided multiple versions of events to investigators, further complicating the timeline of his movements.
Following the conclusion of the investigation, many open questions remain, chief among them what caused Dayan's death. Another question concerns the exact path he took until his body was found, and whether there is human responsibility for his death and who bears it.
«The manner in which Eldar's investigation was handled constitutes a certificate of failure for the Israel Police», said attorney Sapir Pardo, representing the family.
"The family came today to protest outside the Dimona police station, as it was the one that was negligent and created the most substantial and severe omissions in the investigation, leading to the devastating outcome of receiving him in a body bag. The family will do everything possible to have the investigation reopened, especially after the Israel Police itself admitted to omissions in the probe", she added.
The police stated that from the moment the report of his disappearance was received, they initiated actions to locate him. However, it should be noted that according to estimates, the searches began after he was no longer alive.
