Indictment expected in alleged nightclub drugging case
By BEN HARTMAN
An indictment is expected in the coming days against a Lod man suspected of giving drugs to a Tel Aviv woman who collapsed and was hospitalized in serious condition.The suspect is 46-year-old Rafael Michaeli, who came to “The Block” nightclub in Tel Aviv on the night of February 6th carrying a bottle that had some sort of uppers in it. He is suspected of providing the drugs to others at the club that night.Moshit Fisher, 23, was among those who drank from the bottle, and later blacked out on the dance floor and was rushed to hospital in serious condition. A toxicology report later determined that she had Ecstasy in her system, but it remains unclear if the drug was responsible entirely for the incident.Fisher herself has yet to be questioned by police, as she is still recovering from her ordeal. Police have thus been unable to gain her version of events, including whether or not she knowingly took drugs.One of those arrested in the case is an ex-boyfriend of Fisher’s, who has since been released.Michaeli’s attorney said in court on Tuesday that his client and the other members of the group came to the club and took drugs together and at no point was anyone given drugs without their knowledge, nor did Michaeli sell anyone drugs.After Fisher fell ill, the owners of the Block reached an agreement with police to close the club for 10 days as the investigation progressed.The incident follows a number of well-publicized cases involving Tel Aviv nightclubs over the past year, including a case several months ago where a woman who was highly intoxicated was filmed by several patrons having sex with a series of men on the bar of the club “Allenby 40”. She later claimed that she was too intoxicated to give consent.There have also been a series of reports about women being drugged by “date rape drugs” slipped into their drinks, but police have yet to secure a single indictment for the use of such a substance.
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