Beit Jann man allegedly murdered wife's lover

Police arrested a resident of the Galilee Druse village of Beit Jann, on suspicion of killing a man he thought was having an affair with his wife, officers announced Tuesday.

The suspect’s wife was also arrested on suspicion of aiding and abetting the alleged killer.

The homicide victim, 35-year-old Zahar Abu Asla, was a married father of two who owned a grocery. He went missing on Friday. Police launched a large-scale search, with the help of ground units, mounted police, dogs, a helicopter and local residents.

The search continued well into the night, and officers scanned a forest outside of the town, eventually recovering a buried body from the area. Forensic officers arrived on the scene, and quickly determined that Asla has been murdered.

Working under the cover of a media ban, homicide detectives from the Northern Police District’s central unit homed in on a resident of the town, 30-year-old Hial Hamud.

The suspect was taken into custody and confessed in the questioning room, police said.

“He gave details only the killer could have known, and reenacted the murder,” a police spokesman added.

Police also arrested Hamud’s 27- year-old wife, Hial, on suspicion of assisting her husband.

A Nazareth Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday extended both of their custody until August 2.

Northern District Chief Cmdr.

Roni Atiya praised the investigation, saying the swift arrests met the “police’s goal of increasing chance of criminals being caught.”