Two months after being involved in a traffic accident that damaged eight cars on Tel Aviv’s Ayalon Highway, Israeli singer Gidi Gov was formally indicted Wednesday on multiple traffic offenses, including reckless and drunk driving, failure to maintain distance, veering from his lane, driving without insurance, and driving a car whose registration had expired less than four months earlier. The police prosecution also filed a motion to suspend Gov’s driver’s license until the conclusion of legal proceedings.
During a hearing at the Tel Aviv Traffic Court, the police prosecutor said: “The defendant is charged with causing an accident involving eight vehicles while driving under the influence of alcohol, with a breath test showing 311 micrograms of alcohol per liter of breath. He was also found to have driven without valid insurance and with an expired registration.”
According to the prosecution, Gov initially underwent a roadside breath test that indicated 30 micrograms of alcohol, after which he was taken for a more accurate breathalyzer test that confirmed a level of 311 micrograms, well above the legal limit. Investigators submitted body-camera footage, witness statements, a traffic expert report, and an interrogation in which Gov admitted to drinking two shots of whiskey before the crash. “He said he confused the gas pedal with the brake,” the prosecutor told the court, adding that the severity of the crash demonstrated the risk he posed to public safety.
Gov’s driver’s license remains in police possession. His legal team was granted a postponement until December 2025 to review the case materials.
The crash occurred on September 16 following a private performance with Gov’s longtime group “The Sixteenth Lamb.” Driving north on the Ayalon Highway near the Halacha Bridge, Gov’s car struck multiple vehicles. Five people suffered minor injuries. Immediately after the crash, police suspected Gov’s blood alcohol level exceeded the legal limit. He was detained for questioning by the Tel Aviv District traffic investigators, released afterward, and summoned to a disciplinary hearing, which he failed to attend.
In a previous interview, one of the drivers involved in the crash told Ynet: “I was driving home from work and got caught in traffic near the Exhibition Grounds interchange. Suddenly a car came from behind, hitting several cars one after another. At first we thought it was a terror attack. Later I found out it was the singer. He got out of the car and looked stunned.”