Police are hunting after a knife-wielding suspect who assaulted a young couple
in a central Tel Aviv parking lot, forced them to carry out sexual acts with one
another, and raped the woman.
The incident occurred at around 3:30 a.m.
at the Gan Ha’ir parking lot near the Tel Aviv Municipality on Saturday morning,
a police spokeswoman said.
The man, 18, and his girlfriend, 17, arrived
at the parking lot to collect their car, when a suspect armed with a knife
suddenly arrived and began striking the couple.
Threatening to assault
them again, the suspect forced the couple into a bathroom, and ordered them to
perform sexual relations with one another, police said. The suspect then raped
the girl, before fleeing the scene.
A passerby contacted police and
officers rushed to the scene, where they found the couple.
“They are in
shock,” said the police spokeswoman. “We do not know the suspect’s identity at
this stage,” she added.
Police spent Saturday seizing closed circuit
video footage from neighboring businesses as well, and are continuing to build
up a profile of the suspect based on the eye witness testimonies of the
victims.
The girl’s mother told Channel 10 News on Saturday that she had
been concerned for her daughter’s safety during the late hours, but that her
daughter had calmed her, saying that she was with her boyfriend.
"Now
this happened, and she was with him,” her mother said.
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