Man stabbed to death for complaining about noise
Beersheba resident, 36, stabbed to death by teenagers on Friday night after telling them to keep their voices down. Police still searching for four suspects; under fire over claims they failed to handle situation on time
A 36-year-old father of two from Beersheba found his tragic death on Saturday after telling a group of teenagers to keep their voices down.
Police are still searching for three teenage boys and one girl who are suspected of being involved in the murder. One of the teens is suspected of stabbing the victim in a Beersheba park and then fleeing the scene.
Meanwhile, Beersheba police are under fire for failing to show up in time following complaints of the noise from citizens.
Wichman with his daughter on Friday
Gadi Vichman was murdered just hours after celebrating his two-year-old daughter's birthday. According to friends of the family, Vichman had called the police during the night to complain of noise of bottles being smashed. Failing to get his daughter to sleep, Vichman later went downstairs and told a group of teens in a small park to be quiet.
During this time his wife had made a second call to the police. But by the time the officers came, Vichman had been stabbed in his upper torso. Medics who tried to resuscitate him were forced to pronounce him dead.
Gadi's wife, Michal had watched the whole scene from her porch. "I tried to stop him from going down. I was afraid of what might happen," she recalled. "Someone approached him fast, rammed and stabbed him. He collapsed, and I saw it all from the porch."
Victim's body in the park (Photo: Hezl Yosef)
Police said that they had sent a unit to the site after receiving the first complaints of the noise shortly after midnight. According to the police, the unit searched the site, and having found no evidence of disruptions left the scene.
The Beersheba District Police chief originally denied claims by the victim's wife that no police car had arrived following her complaint. But police officials later confirmed that her call had in fact been received.
The next call was made at around 2 am, this time reporting a scuffle. Officers who arrived five minutes later had found the victim's body in the park.
Neighbors said that noise and loud music played by teenagers in the park are a matter of routine. "This noise repeats itself every week," one neighbor said.
"We call the municipal call center all the time to complain. They stop the noise but then start it up again. It's the weekend syndrome. A person goes to complain about noise and just doesn't come back."
Beersheba Mayor Rubik Danilovitch asked Police Commissioner Yohanan Danino to boost deployment around teenage hangouts on weekends. "This is a shocking murder which must not be ignored," he said. "Sadly, we witness growing violence among teenagers across Israel and now is the time to fight this phenomenon with sever measures."
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