Ben-Gurion Airport bus crash driver: I don’t remember what happened

“I was not tired, I was not on the phone – it was in my pocket,”Egged bus driver Alexander Liebman said in a brief and inconclusive statement during his testimony on Monday.

By MAAYAN JAFFE-HOFFMAN
Bus overturns on Sunday December 22, two of the four crash victims were named as Yosef Kahlani, Hayley Sevitz Varenberg (photo credit: AVSHALOM SASSONI/SOCIAL MEDIA/MAARIV)
Bus overturns on Sunday December 22, two of the four crash victims were named as Yosef Kahlani, Hayley Sevitz Varenberg
(photo credit: AVSHALOM SASSONI/SOCIAL MEDIA/MAARIV)
The driver of Egged bus 947 that crashed Sunday night on Route 40 near Ben-Gurion Airport killing four people said he does not remember what happened when his bus rammed through a concrete bus stop and overturned.
“I was not tired, I was not on the phone – it was in my pocket,” Alexander Liebman said in a brief and inconclusive statement during his testimony on Monday. “I do not remember what happened at the time of the accident.”
Liebman is being accused of the alleged negligent homicide of his victims, two of which were named by press time Monday: Haley Sevitz Varenberg, an immigrant to Israel from South Africa, and Yosef Kahlani, 79, from Petah Tikva.
Police are holding Liebman in custody at least until Thursday, while investigators gather more information about the accident; the investigation is mainly focused on the driver. Police issued an order asking for access to Liebman’s phone, and for a blood test to determine if he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
“The investigation has just begun and I cannot discuss details now,” Liebman’s lawyer, Uri Baron, told Channel 12. “We agreed to detention until Thursday. After that, we will see what transpires.”
The accident occurred Sunday night while the bus was traveling from Jerusalem to Haifa. It overturned near the Bedek Junction. An additional 14 passengers were injured, two of them seriously. The bus was carrying 25 passengers.
Kahlani was a Torah tutor who traveled weekly on Egged No. 947 to give lessons. He was buried Monday and is survived by his wife and three daughters – Iris, Dikla and Orna – as well as 14 grandchildren.
At Kahlani’s funeral, Iris eulogized her father: “Our pristine beloved father: Who believes you went that way, so cruelly, without any preparation, without saying goodbye?… without hugging you, without having time to tell you how much we love you.”
She said how she had been waiting for her father to arrive that night for Hanukkah candle lighting, “and you didn’t arrive. Your light went out for our mom and us.”
“I wanted you to be there when I married off my children,” she continued. “I wanted you to be here when I had grandchildren – so many joys awaited you.”
She promised that she and her sisters would take care of their mom.
“Go to your resting place in peace and love,” Iris concluded. “We will remember you forever, my beloved father.”
Varenberg is survived by her husband, Eli Varenberg. Her funeral will be held on Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. at Har Hamenuhot Cemetery in Jerusalem.
Maariv Online contributed to this report.


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