Man suspected of murdering mother, stabbing girlfriend, 2 men
Kiryat Ata police apprehend young man who allegedly stabbed girlfriend, mother, two additional men. Mother dies of wounds, other victims lightly-moderately injured. Police claim 'momentary insanity'
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Police initiatially said the the rampage was as an act of "momentary insanity," but investigators have also raised the possibility that the man wanted to end his sick mother's suffering.
Suspect before his capture (Photo: Israel Police)
According to a preliminary investigation, a few hours before the murder the suspect had brought his mother back from the hospital, where she was being treated for a severe illness. A neighbors said the man treated his mother "with devotion" while she was ill.
The investigation revealed that after attempting to murder his girlfriend and mother at the mother's house, the suspect fled the scene and got into a car accident in the city. He is suspected of stabbing two men who were involved in the accident, both sustaining light to moderate injuries. Police caught the suspect in a nearby field.
The girlfriend, sustained moderate stab wounds
An MDA paramedic called to the scene told Ynet: "The two injured women were lying by the door in a big pool of blood. They were both severely injured with many stab wounds to the upper abdomen. Both were conscious, but the older woman lost consciousness on the way to the hospital." The paramedic added that the younger woman said that her partner called her to the living room, stabbed her and then chased after her to the door where he stabbed his mother, Batya Ohana, as well.
The girlfriend, 27-year-old Shani Yagodnik, was admitted to Rambam with moderate injuries.
Mother's house in Kiryat Ata (Photo: Avishag Shaar-Yashuv)
One of the men who was later stabbed at the car accident scene told his Rambam hospital doctors, "I was standing at a red light with my son in the car, when suddenly someone crashed into us from behind. I got out to see what happened, and this guy got out of his car with a knife and stabbed me. Then he started running away and left his car there, probably because my car blocked his."
Scene of car acident (Photo: Avishag Shaar-Yashuv)
Earlier, Zvulun District Police Chief Ilan Sardel said that the suspect is a completely normative man, and defined the rampage as an act of "momentary insanity." According to him, the knife the suspect allegedly used to stab his mother and girlfriend was found at the scene, and the two other victims were stabbed with another knife. The suspect resisted arrest and denied all allegations in the initial investigation.
The mother, Batya Ohana
The suspect lives with his girlfriend in a nearby city, but the two came to the mother's house, where the stabbing occurred. One of the mother's neighbors said that the family has been living there for about a year, and added: "They are a good family, good people. The kids respect the mother and are well-behaved. Nothing could have indicated any issues. I can only hope this family will be okay."
A similar murder spree occurred in Haifa last March: Security guard Dov Tager, 46, murdered his partner, 42, her son, 17, and another friend, 52, and afterwards committed suicide. Police estimated the motive for the attack was jealousy.
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