Girlfriend may have lied in murder case

Arik Rafaelov, 16, laid to rest on Tuesday, was killed after being struck repeatedly by his girlfriend’s stepfather.

By YAAKOV LAPPIN
The 15-year-old girlfriend of a teen who was beaten to death by the girl’s stepfather in Beersheba this week was arrested on Wednesday for providing a false account to police.
Arik Rafaelov, 16, laid to rest on Tuesday, was killed after being struck repeatedly by his girlfriend’s stepfather.
Rafaelov’s brother said Arik had been struck with a hammer and kept inthe stepfather’s home for hours before medical attention was sought,when it was far too late. Police are investigating those claims.According to some reports, Rafaelov’s girlfriend told police that herstepfather was unarmed during the incident, matching an account givenby her stepfather and mother.
Police refused to confirm the reports. “We think her statement to uswas false, and the court will have to look into it,” a Negev Policespokesman told The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday. “Wecannot discuss the content of her statement,” the spokesman added.
The incident began on Saturday night, when the youth and his girlfriendreturned home and met the stepfather on a street near the girl’s home.
The stepfather was furious that his stepdaughter has come home late,and an argument broke out between the two. The man then began beatingthe youth, police suspect, causing him severe head injuries. Paramedicswere called to the scene only hours later, evacuating the injured youthto the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba early on Sunday. He washospitalized in intensive care and declared brain-dead by the hospital;then declared dead on Monday. Police arrested the stepfather, his wife,and two of the father’s friends.