20 years after the murder of Ashdod resident Margarita Levy, police announced on Thursday that they had arrested a suspect in the case and expect to file an indictment against him in the coming days.
On June 19, 2003, Levy, a 21-year-old woman from Ashdod, was found dead wrapped in blankets and with severe signs of violence on her body in a park in Eilat.
Throughout the years, investigators made repeated attempts to extract a DNA profile from evidence found around Levy's body, but were unsuccessful until now.
Recent advances in DNA extraction technology enabled investigators to re-examine evidence found near Levy, leading them to a 51-year-old suspect who at the time of the murder lived in Eilat and now lives in Jaffa.
Police conducted 10-month long undercover investigation before arresting the suspect
Police conducted a 10-month long undercover investigation against the suspect and arrested him in May and only on Thursday released details of the case's developments.
The suspect's arrest was extended repeatedly until the investigation was completed and the South District Attorney's Office filed a notice that it was preparing to file an indictment charging the suspect with murder on Wednesday night.
"The horrific murder of the late Margarita Levy that took place 20 years ago has been resolved, thanks to the professional work of the Eilat area police, the identification division of Israel Police and the assistance of the National Institute of Forensic Medicine," said Southern District Commander Peretz Amar. "We will continue to resolutely investigate every unsolved murder, and even if many years pass we will not let up and the case will remain open, until we bring the perpetrators to justice."