Man who dismembered ex-wife in Thailand lands in Israel
Eli Cohen, who was pardoned by Thai king after serving time for murdering ex-wife, dumping body parts in Bangkok river, lands in Israel then immediately boards another plane to unknown destination
Eli Cohen, 46, who was jailed in Thailand for murdering his ex-wife Carol Cohen and dismembering her body, landed in Israel Thursday morning. Cohen's sister said he immediately boarded another plane en route to another country.
In December 2004, Cohen was sentenced to life in prison after he confessed to stabbing Carol Cohen to death and dumping her dismembered body parts in a Bangkok river. The court in Bangkok did not sentence him to death because the judges were convinced the murder was not premeditated and was committed in an uncontrollable fit of rage. Since Cohen had already been convicted of murder, he could be tried again.
Related stories:
- 50-year-old woman found dead in Qalansawe
- Kuwait hangs 3 men convicted of murder
- J'lem couple allegedly dismembers man's ex-wife
In November 2012 Cohen was pardoned by the king of Thailand after serving only seven years.
Carol's mother Rivkah Amsalem (Photo: Motti Kimchi)
Cohen murdered his ex-wife, the mother of his two children, in February 2004 after he travelled to Thailand and invited her to visit. A few days after Carol's arrival in Bangkok, he stabbed her to death, placed her dismembered body parts in a suitcase and threw it in the river. The woman's upper body was found in the suitcase. Her head, legs and hands were later discovered in a ditch. Cohen was arrested after complaining at the Israeli Embassy that his wife had gone missing. Employees at the hotel the couple had stayed in said they found a blood-soaked towel in his room.
Eli and Carol Cohen (Archive photo from Thai newspaper)
Attorney Dikla Tutian, co-chairperson of the Noga Legal Center for Victims of Crime, is representing Carol Cohen's family. She said no action was taken to prevent Eli Cohen's entrance to Israel. "The authorities are not lifting a finger to minimize the distortion of justice," she said.
The Noga Center turned to the interior, foreign and justice ministries, but the king's pardon was fast-tracked nonetheless, "in a manner which goes against justice and common sense," Tutian said. "The murderer returned as though nothing ever happened."
- Receive Ynetnews updates
directly to your desktop
