Israel Police arrested six suspects for allegedly breaking into an Israeli military museum last Friday and stealing decommissioned weapons displayed there.
Director of the Golani Memorial Site And Museum in northern Israel Brigadier General (Res.) Alon Friedman told Ynet that four masked individuals broke into the museum early Friday evening by sawing open the memorial's heavy steel door. The suspects then stole the antique weapons after breaking the protected glass case in which they were displayed.
Footage from the heist in the Golani Memorial Site And Museum in northern Israel, February 18, 2022
(Photo: Golani Memorial Site And Museum)
"These weapons were used in battles fought by the Golani Brigade from the early day of its inception in 1948,” Friedman said.
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Police seizing some of the decommissioned weapons stolen from the Golani Memorial Site And Museum in northern Israel, February 19, 2022
(Photo: Israel Police)
“There’s even a weapon here that commemorates the name of a fallen soldier who fought in several battles in 1948, and up to the Golani Brigade's latest operations. It is a wide variety of weapons that represent Golani’s 74 years of existence.”
Friedman said he believed that the thieves were not aware that the weapons have been decommissioned, or otherwise thought they could make them operational again.
“I guess they just saw or got information about the weapons in display here… You can see that they broke into the same hall where the weapons are located and not to the other halls,” he said.
Friedman praised law enforcement for finding all the weapons stolen in the predominantly Arab town of Baqa al-Gharbiyye shortly after the heist.
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Some of the decommissioned weapons stolen from the Golani Memorial Site And Museum in northern Israel, February 19, 2022
(Photo: Israel Police)
"Our swift response, coupled with our alert systems and Israel Police's determined response, led to a speedy resolution to the case: Six were detained and all weapons were found on Saturday morning."
Friedman added that the site was expected to reopen as soon as possible, probably within a day or two and invited the general public to visit the site.