Barnoar shooting: Hagai Felician charged with murder
Main suspect in 2009 shooting charged with two counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder
An indictment has been filed with the Tel Aviv District Court on Monday against Hagai Felician for two counts of murder and 10 counts of attempted murder in the 2009 gay youth center shooting.
According to the indictment, Felician, 23, sought to harm then Barnoar manager Shaul Ganon and "intentionally cause the death of the center's visitors."
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The Barboar shooting left Nir Katz, 26, and Liz Turbeshi, 16, dead and several others wounded.
The indictment stated that Felician "had fired at the people at the center with intent to indiscriminately kill anyone caught in the line of fire. He then went into side rooms looking for other victims and fired at them with intent to kill. The defendant left the scene only after he ran out of ammunition."
Victims Nir Katz and Liz Trubeshi (Photos: Shaul Golan, Adva Naftali)
The indictment further suggested that at an unspecified time, Felician learned that Ganon had sexually assaulted one of his relatives. He then turned to who would later become the state witness in the case and asked him for details about Ganon and the Barnoar center.
Felician in court (Photo: Moti Kimchi)
It was at this stage that Felician had decided on the shooting in order to avenge the sexual assault. According to the indictment, Felician acted out of a desire of revenge and "hostility toward the victims' sexual orientation."
The State Prosecutor's Office has motioned to remand Felician pending the conclusion of all legal proceedings.
It presented the court with evidence allegedly proving Felician's guilt. In a text message date June 2, 2013 Felician wrote to the state witness "I don't understand why you're trying to open up what is dead. Don't wake the dead, it's our freedom we're talking about here."
A text message dated June 3, 2013 read: "Listen carefully, it's been four years. It's been quiet so far, let's keep it that way...no one can know it was us, we did a clean job at the Barnoar."
The State is also claiming that Felician had implicated himself during his time in custody. He allegedly told officers that he hid the gun he used in the shooting and burned his clothes.
He also noted he regretted ever trusting the state witness and admitted he tried to coordinate stories with another suspect.
An indictment has also been filed against one of Felician's relatives on weapons trafficking charges.
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