Body in the wall of Haifa apartment identified as 60-year-old tenant

Neighbors of the man whose body was found said he disappeared about a year ago. The investigation is ongoing.

 Police at the scene of where a body was found at an apartment in Haifa, August 9, 2023. (photo credit: FLASH90)
Police at the scene of where a body was found at an apartment in Haifa, August 9, 2023.
(photo credit: FLASH90)

A body recently found entombed in a concrete block in the wall of an apartment in Haifa was identified as a 60-year-old tenant named Vitali Chuklin, the National Institute of Forensic Medicine discovered on Sunday, according to Walla.

Neighbors of Chuklin's said that the man disappeared about a year ago. The investigation is ongoing.

"This is utterly disgusting," said Baruch, the owner of the house, about the incident. Baruch added, "For 50 years I've been renting apartments to such poor people, I've already come across corpses, but I've never had anything like this."

The 40-meter apartment is on the corner of Halutz and Yechiel streets, near the Talpiot market. The entrance to the building is tucked between shops. There is a lot of turnover. This apartment of Baruch's is rented for about NIS 750 per month. "I deal with such poor, homeless tenants. I give them a roof over their heads. This is the kindness I do," he said.

How did they find the body?

Ahmed Choupata, a 59-year-old renovator from the village of Bardala, said on Saturday night that inside the block of concrete he was demolishing he found a frying pan and parts of silverware and did not attach any importance to it. However, when he continued working and opened a plastic bag that was buried there, the horror was revealed to his eyes. He said that he could not determine whether it was a doll or a human head, without being able to identify whether it was a man or a woman. "My hair stood up from fear," he told Walla!

Police investigate a Haifa building after a decaying body was found onsite. (credit: ISRAEL POLICE/VIA MAARIV)
Police investigate a Haifa building after a decaying body was found onsite. (credit: ISRAEL POLICE/VIA MAARIV)

Last week, a dead body in a state of decay was found disposed of in an apartment in Haifa. Due to the state of advanced decay and wrapping of the body, police suspect foul play and investigators believe this is a murder case, though all possibilities are being considered.