Principal's murder suspect – school food vendor
Nearly two months after popular education leader gunned down at school, police reveal suspect has been in custody since day of shooting.
Police filed an intention to indict within five days and claimed that the motive for the murder was the principal's decision to open additional food stations at the school. Ynet was told that several days before the murder Yosef Haj Yachieh filed a complaint against the suspect with the police.
The murder caused sparked mass demonstrations in Tayibe, leading to wide-ranging strikes.
Haj Yachieh, a well-known public figure in the city, was in his office on August 25 with three other teachers, when a man walked into the school, entered the room, and shot dead the popular principal.
After the shooting the suspect passed Haj Yachieh's secretary and left the school grounds. The Central Division's Central Crimes Unit launched an investigation after the murder was reported.
Investigators noticed that the closed-circuit security cameras spotted the suspect leaving the premises with an old Subaru pick-up truck.
The Central Crimes Unit concluded the murder was premeditated – police visited the suspect's home the same day as the crime. Qayeek was arrested and the vehicle seen leaving the school was parked in the yard. The Subaru was taken to the lab for analysis, where evidence was discovered linking the suspect to the murder.
At the same time, CCU detectives arrested the suspect's son and called his wife and nephew for questioning. During the investigation, further evidence was collected to tie the suspect to the murder, though he maintained he invoked his right against self-incrimination, refusing to respond to the interrogators' questions.
The investigation also noted the suspect's criminal past. Police believed that Qayeek, who won a tender to operate a food station at the school last year, was worried that the principal's decision to bring in additional contractors would hurt his income – and decided to murder him.
