Axe, clubs, vehicular assault and perjury: a drug deal gone wrong in the north
A drug deal in Kiryat Shmona turned into a serious violent incident after the customer claimed he did not have the full payment. In response, the suspects attempted to run over his brother and friend, and then broke into his home and attacked him with an axe and clubs. To evade punishment, they used a 70-year-old man to help them escape and sent another young man to give false testimony at the police station. Now, all five are charged with a series of serious offenses.
Last July, a drug deal in the city of Kiryat Shmona turned into a violent rampage that included an attempted vehicular assault, an attack with a cold weapon, and a planned attempt to obstruct a police investigation. Following an intensive investigation by Northern District police officers, serious indictments were filed against five of those involved in the affair.
The incident began in the middle of last month, when two 20-year-old men from Katzrin arrived in Kiryat Shmona with the goal of conducting a drug deal. Upon arriving at the customer, he informed them that he did not have the full amount required for the drugs, and also declared a previous financial debt that he could not cover. The two left the scene, joined another 20-year-old resident of the city, and set out a second time toward the customer's home.
Financial debt, attempted vehicular assault, and axe attack
During the drive, the three noticed the victim's brother and his friend walking down the street. The driver of the vehicle immediately accelerated in their direction in a clear attempt to run them over. Both pedestrians tried to dodge, but one of them was hit by the vehicle's mirror and was evacuated to the hospital in light condition.
The attackers did not stop there. Immediately after the attempted vehicular assault, the three continued to the victim's home. They attacked him and beat him brutally using an axe and a club, causing him very serious injuries that included fractures to his face. A 70-year-old resident of Katzrin also arrived at the scene, who assisted the squad of attackers in fleeing the scene.
At a later stage, as part of a planned effort to obstruct the police investigation that began following the report of the wounded, another 22-year-old young man from Kiryat Shmona appeared at the police station. He provided the investigators with a false version according to which he was the one who drove the vehicle that committed the assault. However, the police investigators managed to crack the lie, and it turned out that the attackers tried to convince him to testify that suspects he did not know had attacked him, and thereby place the blame for the violent incident on unknown parties.
During the days of the investigation and while carrying out numerous operations, Northern District police officers managed to locate and arrest all five defendants in various hideouts across the country. At the end of the evidence collection, the Northern District Attorney's Office filed indictments against them attributing a series of serious offenses: aggravated assault, drug trafficking and supply, aiding and abetting aggravated assault, subornation of perjury, obstruction of justice, threats, and possession of drugs not for personal consumption.
