Petah Tikva police are awaiting formal questioning of 10-year-old Yaheli Sofer on Tuesday, following his rescue in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak. The boy was allegedly taken from Petah Tikva by a 20-year-old man from Jerusalem. Investigators now suspect the suspect not only abducted the child but also physically harmed him, according to a report first published in Israel Hayom.
The questioning will be conducted by specially trained investigators from the Welfare Ministry - social workers with expertise in interviewing children. Meanwhile, Yaheli has already told his parents what happened after he encountered the young man. According to the boy, the suspect told him he had been thrown out of his home and needed help collecting donations. "We walked far from home and I was scared," he recounted.
According to the investigation, the suspect took Yaheli on Sunday afternoon from Petah Tikva to Bnei Brak, where he instructed the boy to ask passersby for money. Police also suspect that during the time they spent together, the man gave the 10-year-old a cigarette to smoke.
It was only late at night, after Yehali's photo had been circulated on social media, that someone who spotted him walking the streets of Bnei Brak alongside the suspect alerted police. The young man was arrested and Yaheli was returned to his family. The suspect's detention has been extended until Thursday.
