Illustration
Photo: Visual/Photos
81-year-old woman brutally beaten by robbers
Two Ashkelon residents arrested on suspicion of severely injuring woman by running her over with their car, stealing large sum of money from her
Two Ashkelon residents, aged 19 and 26, were arrested Friday morning on suspicion of injuring an 81-year-old woman during a robbery Thursday evening.
The woman had been unconscious since the robbery and regained consciousness Friday morning.
The woman got off a bus at around 9 pm and crossed the road, when the two suspects arrived at the area in a car. The two got out of the car, tried to kidnap the woman, beat her severely on all parts of her body and robbed her of her money.
Police suspect that the two may have also run the woman over with their car before or after the robbery.
A Magen David Adom crew was dispatched to the area and evacuated the unconscious woman, who suffered from a severe head injury, to the Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon, where she received initial medical treatment. She was later transferred to the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba.
The Ashkelon police launched an investigation into the incident and arrested the two suspects. According to acting Ashkelon police commander, Superintendent Yehiel Buhadana, the police had evidence that the two were involved in the attack.
The two suspects were questioned and confessed to committing the robbery. The police are expected to ask the court to extend their remand.
Police officials said that the woman had a habit of carrying large sums of money for fear that her son, who is a drug addict, would steal her money and buy drugs.
"These two young men planned the robbery down to the smallest details, followed the woman and tried to rob her, brutally hurting her. This is a shocking incident," Superintendent Buhadana said.
The woman underwent surgery overnight and is now in moderate and stable condition as of Friday morning.
