Suspect in Barnoar shooting denies sexual harassment by LGBT activist
Only one of three suspects whose name was not cleared for publication tells police he had nothing to do with LGBT activist; insists 'I'm innocent'
The suspect, who is the only one of the three suspects whose name is still under gag order, insisted he was innocent, adding that he didn’t mind if his name was made public.
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"I wasn't raped," he said, referring to allegations that the LGBT activist had sexually assaulted him. The alleged assault is currently perceived as the motive for the 2009 shooting spree in the youth center, as police believe that suspect Hagai Felician had planned the shooting as revenge for the activist's alleged sexual assault of the suspect whose name remains under gag order.
"I had nothing to do with the LGBT activist," the suspect, who was 15 when the shooting took place, added.
The LGBT activist's name also remained under gag order after the names of two suspects, Felician and Tarlan Hankishayev, were cleared for publication.
The suspect said he was willing to undergo a polygraph test with the presence of his lawyer.
Police insist that the suspect was trying to relieve himself of any connection to the shooting and was therefore denying the sexual assault allegations.
Referring to the State witness, who, according to police, was part of the planning of the shooting and decided to testify against the other suspects four months ago, the suspect said: "He's a liar. All he wants is police favors. They'd rather believe a State witness who was in jail four times.
"I find it interesting that he was released early all four times. Someone should look into it," the suspect added.
Nir Katz, 26, and Liz Trubeshi, 16 were killed on the August 1, 2009 when a veiled man entered the Barnoar LGBT youth center in Tel Aviv and began shooting at the teens gathered there. Eleven others were injured.
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