"I will stab you, I will murder you": The sex worker brutally attacked by a client in an exclusive interview

An indictment was filed today (Wednesday) against Moshe Elimelech, 28, for aggravated robbery of L., 23, who works in sex services. According to the indictment, what began as a meeting at her apartment in the center of the country turned within minutes into an extremely violent event: Elimelech attacked her, threatened to stab and murder her, and fled the scene with two iPhones, a bag, and thousands of shekels.

Shortly after the robbery, Elimelech was located near the Kiryat Ono mall by Bat Yam station police officers in cooperation with the Mesubim station, with police stating he was in possession of cash and receipts for clothes he purchased with L.'s money. However, the investigation revealed another disturbing picture: just two days earlier, on August 12, he had been released from prison for property offenses.

Now, for the first time since that night, L. speaks with Walla and recounts the moments when, according to her, she was sure she would not leave the apartment alive. "I thought I was going to die," she says. "This is the most bizarre event I've ever had in my life. I didn't think something like this would happen to me."

The event took place on August 14, around 2:00 AM. According to the indictment, Elimelech arrived at L.'s apartment in the center of the country to consume sex services. During the meeting, an argument developed between the two over the price of the service, but according to L., this was not the only reason she asked him to leave. She claims that at a certain stage he asked to use drugs inside the apartment and she refused.

"I told him there is no place to use drugs in my house. I told him it wasn't appropriate and asked him to leave," she recalls. "We also argued about the price. I told him: 'It doesn't suit me, get up and go.' He really tricked me to get into my house. As far as I'm concerned, he entered to commit a robbery against me."

According to the indictment, shortly after she asked him to leave, Elimelech grabbed a 1.5-liter plastic bottle that was full of a drink and hit L. on the head with it. Afterward, it is alleged, he hit her six times with his fists in the face.

L. describes how within moments the meeting turned into a struggle for her life. "Suddenly, out of nowhere, he grabbed the Coke bottle that was on the table and slammed it hard into my face," she said. "I tried to dial the police and he took my phones. Then he started attacking me even more. He hit me with the tube and told me: 'I will stab you, I will murder you.' This is the most bizarre event I've ever had in my life. I didn't think such a thing would happen to me."

According to the indictment, at this stage Elimelech took L.'s bag and her two iPhones. The prosecution claims he continued to hit her using the phones as well. When she tried to take her property from his hands, it is alleged that he grabbed a glass tube intended for drug use, threatened her, and wounded her in her left arm.

"I thought I was going to die, but I didn't give up," she says. "Anyway, I felt I had nothing to lose. I tried to take my bag because my whole life is on the phone."

Even after she absorbed the blows, according to her, she continued to struggle with him. "I didn't give up. I got strength at that moment. I got up after the bombs I received to the face and I couldn't give up on my life that is there," she said. "I preferred that I would be wounded and that something would happen to me, rather than something happening to all my memories with my family and my personal things. I didn't see that I had anything to lose."

L. says that after the event she also tried to trace the phone number from which he contacted her. According to her, the check led her to another woman who works in prostitution. "I checked the mobile from which he contacted me and I understood it was him," she said. "I understood that he harassed someone else who works in prostitution, and she said that he stole her phone too."

The police, however, stated that as part of the check conducted, no other victims related to Elimelech were located. According to the indictment, as a result of the event, L. suffered a bruise on her face above her left eye, bleeding on her hand, swelling, and a bruise on her lips. Later, she also suffered from dizziness, pain in her left eye, and blurred vision. On August 16, two days after the event, she sought medical treatment at Wolfson Hospital.

But for L., the physical injuries are only part of what remains from that night. "I'm afraid because I don't know what will be," she says. "I'm in uncertainty. I'm afraid that suddenly the person can be released and come to me again. This is the thing that scares me the most."

Alongside the fear, she also expresses anger at the reality in which, according to her, women who work in prostitution do not receive sufficient protection. "I don't understand how they allow such a person to walk free when he is dangerous to the public," she said. "I feel there is disregard. The client criminalization law does not protect us. My friend also had such a case. Someone tried to murder her and stole her bag. Women who try to get out of prostitution don't succeed, and I don't feel there is help. The government needs to do more so that we can get out of the cycle of prostitution."

Commander Vorona stated in a conversation with Walla: "In violence events, we do not take things lightly. Anyone who harms the security of the citizen and endangers the public, it doesn't matter to us who is standing before us. We will protect every citizen."

At the end of the investigation, the Tel Aviv District Attorney's Office filed an indictment against Elimelech attributing to him aggravated robbery. At the same time, a request was filed to order his detention until the end of the legal proceedings against him.

After the indictment and the arrest, L. still finds it difficult to feel that the event is behind her. For her, the violent robbery also became a reminder of a reality in which women who work in prostitution might remain exposed and defenseless. "Every girl today needs to install cameras at home and be more alert to what is happening around her," she says. "If she feels in her intuition that she is with a bad person, let her be attentive to it and trust her intuitions."

According to the indictment, L. tried to prevent Elimelech from leaving the apartment, pulled his shirt, and even tore it. Despite this, he managed to escape while carrying her two phones, a bag worth 3,000 shekels, about 6,500 shekels in cash, and the apartment keys.

L. ran after him. "I ran after him on the stairs and started shouting. I shouted to my neighbors to call the police," she said. The report reached the 100 hotline, and Bat Yam station police officers were summoned to the scene. Along with them, crime scene investigators also arrived, who questioned L. and collected forensic findings from the apartment. From there, the investigation began which led, within a short time, to the location of Elimelech in the Kiryat Ono area.

Commander Bar Vorona, a patrol officer in Bat Yam, told Walla: "On August 14, between Friday and Saturday, a report was received at the 100 hotline about a robbery event that occurred inside an apartment in the center of the country. Patrol police arrived at the apartment along with crime scene investigators, questioned the victim, and collected forensic findings. It turned out that the defendant arrived at her apartment and attacked her brutally around 2:00 AM."

According to him, the investigation actions led quickly to his location. "In a directed and focused activity, using the tools available to the police, we located the suspect. A short time later he was located near the Kiryat Ono mall, and in his possession were seized money and receipts for clothes he purchased with her money."

In his investigation, Elimelech linked himself to being in L.'s apartment, but denied the robbery and assault offenses. His version, as given to the police, was: "I was in her apartment, but I didn't steal and I didn't attack."

During the investigation, a confrontation was also held between the two. The police described it as a difficult confrontation and claimed that the things that came up during it strengthened the suspicions against Elimelech. At the same time, it turned out that just two days earlier, on August 12, he had been released from prison for property offenses.