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Suspicion: Arms stolen from IDF, sold to criminals

Military Police arrest eight soldiers, civilians suspected of stealing weapons, warefare from IDF bases, selling them to underworld. Among suspects are two soldiers from Druze Herev Battalion

The Military Police and the Galilee District Police's Central Unit in recent weeks uncovered a weapon smuggling ring that allegedly stole weapons and warfare from IDF bases and sold them to criminal elements.

 

The perpetrators are also suspected of drug charges. So far, eight suspects have been arrested, two of which are soldiers serving in Druze Herev Battalion.

 

The investigation commenced after a MAG machine-gun was stolen from Yiftah military base near Rosh Pina. Following the probe, members of the Investigative Military Police arrested two soldiers from the Druze village of Yirka and six additional civilians, three of which also reside in Yirka, two from the Druze village of Hurfeish and one from the town of Odem in the Golan Heights.

 

The police suspects that the six civilians were in charge of disguising the weapons and "marketing" them to criminal elements in the underworld, while the soldiers were responsible for stealing the weapons from military bases.

 

Ynet investigation reveled that one of the suspects from Yirka is also suspected of operating a metal workshop where he made silencers and erased the serial numbers on the weapons. In addition, it was reveled that the police has been wiretapping phone conversations between the suspects for a long period of time.

 

The police reported that they are checking whether the suspects were also responsible for a series of weapon and fragmentation grenade thefts that occurred during the past year throughout military bases in the north of the country.

 

Attorneys Basel Falah and Yoni Dadon, who represent some of the civilian suspects, denied the allegations against them. The suspects' remand has been extended during the past week and they are all slated to be released on Thursday.

 


פרסום ראשון: 02.24.10, 23:33
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