Sudanese man confesses to beating death of elderly TA woman

Police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld says suspect told police that he had been drunk at the time of the incident and unaware of his actions or behavior.

By BEN HARTMAN
Police on Wednesday arrested a man suspected of beating an elderly woman to death on a street in south Tel Aviv hours earlier.
Police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld said the suspect, a Sudanese citizen, had confessed to the crime but told police that he had been drunk at the time of the incident and unaware of his actions or behavior.
Rosenfeld said the man would undergo a psychological evaluation to determine whether he had been aware of what he was doing.
Paramedics found the woman, who police said was in her 70s, unconscious on the street in serious condition shortly after 7 a.m. Wednesday. She was rushed to Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, where she died shortly thereafter.
On Wednesday afternoon, police caught the suspect and took him to the scene of the crime, where he reenacted the incident.
According to Rosenfeld, the incident does not signify a rise in violence among African foreign workers. He said it was an isolated incident that appeared to be linked to alcohol or possibly an argument between the suspect and the victim.
Police still have not identified the victim, who was not carrying any identification, and have not received a missing persons report on anyone matching her description.
Meanwhile, police said, a judge with the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court has banned the publication of a video with footage of the murder, until further notice.
Also Wednesday, police arrested an Eritrean suspected of beating,raping and robbing a woman in her Tel Aviv apartment a month ago. Thevictim reported the incident to police at the time, but on Wednesday,the man returned to her apartment a second time. The woman then calledpolice, who arrested the suspect.
Rosenfeld said police believed the man was familiar with the woman’s residence, either through his work or otherwise.
The suspect, age 28, could face charges of rape, robbery and aggravated assault.