An indictment was filed today against 3 residents of Lod who engaged in severe violence against a driver following a road dispute.
The three suspects, in their twenties, were arrested a few days ago after assaulting a driver following a road dispute. As a result of the attack, the driver suffered injuries. He was taken to "Asaf HaRofeh" hospital.
Following their arrest, the three underwent an investigation by the police, after which they were remanded in custody, and their detention was extended. Today, as mentioned, the prosecution filed indictments against them in the district court. Yesterday, indictments were also filed by the Police Investigations Department against the officers Avraham Gripat and Menachem Hajaz for assaulting detainees while they were handcuffed. According to one of the indictments, the complainant was apprehended by the police, including Gripat, after being suspected of committing an offense. The complainant was taken to the police station, where he was placed in the station courtyard and leaned against a stone bench. Additionally, he was under the influence of alcohol while being handcuffed.
At this stage, while Gripat and another officer were smoking, the complainant repeatedly stood up and each time was seated back down. At a certain point, the complainant turned to Gripat, requested to sit beside him, and lightly touched his leg. Gripat instructed the complainant to stop touching him, and on the third occasion, Gripat struck the complainant on his cheek.
According to another indictment against Detective Hajaz, the complainant was arrested and handcuffed by several police officers, including Hajaz, after he resisted the break-in and search of his home until his mother arrived. The complainant asked that his hands be released from the handcuffs and said that he had no intention of escaping. At this point, one of the police officers grabbed the hands of the complainant and a struggle began between the two, during which the complainant was requested to calm down. Immediately after that, the complainant said to one of the police officers, "Let's see you calm me down." At this point, one of the police officers grabbed the hands of the complainant, pulled him towards him and kept him away from the door area.
Then Hajaz grabbed the complainant's left hand, pulled him in his direction, held his neck, pushed him to the ground, and kicked him in the face. As a result of Hajaz's actions, the complainant suffered injuries to his nose and bruises on his body. At the end of the incident, Hajaz stated that the complainant had risen from the floor and posed a threat, so he had to kick him in the face for self-defense, which was not accurate. The indictment attributes to the defendant the commission of an offense of assault causing actual bodily harm.
