A Petah Tikva resident who went to wash his car Sunday afternoon did not return home, prompting his wife to report him missing. He was later located in Tel Aviv through cellphone tracking, badly injured and bleeding, police said.
According to investigators, the man told officers he had been abducted by three suspects who threatened him with a knife and a gun.
Police said the investigation began after the victim’s wife reported that he failed to return home after going out to wash his vehicle. Officers traced his cellphone signal to Tel Aviv. When they arrived at the location, they found him inside his car, severely bruised and covered with a towel soaked in blood.
Following his account that he had been kidnapped at knifepoint and gunpoint, officers searched the vehicle and recovered two knives and plastic bags. No firearm was found at the scene.
Two suspects were arrested at the location, and a third was detained later. The suspects were identified as Michael Nimirovsky, 37, of Haifa; Adel Aluhash, 24, of Ramla; and Amir Abu Amar, 22, of Lod.
The three were brought on Monday before the Petah Tikva Magistrate’s Court for a remand hearing. They denied the allegations during questioning.
Police requested an eight-day extension of their detention, citing suspicion of kidnapping, illegal possession or transport of a weapon, aggravated assault by two or more persons and issuing threats. Investigators are also examining whether the incident was linked to a dispute over property allegedly stolen by the victim from a relative of one of the suspects.
The court ruled there was reasonable suspicion linking Nimirovsky and Aluhash to the alleged offenses and extended their detention by seven days. Abu Amar’s detention was extended by three days, with the court noting that the suspicion against him was at an initial stage.