Former Gaza hostage Mia Schem’s case against a Tel Aviv fitness trainer for alleged rape was closed after a year-long investigation, the Tel Aviv District Attorney’s office announced on Wednesday.
Sources familiar with the matter claimed that “the case closed solely due to a lack of evidence, and this does not mean lack of confidence in the survivor’s complaints.”
Additionally, the District Attorney announced that no indictment will be filed against the accused.
Police ‘failed in their duty,’ Schem's lawyer claims
Schem’s attorney, Efrat Nahmani-Bar, told Walla that “Mia Schem did what every citizen is supposed to do: she turned to the police in distress after a complex event so that the police could find out what happened in those hours that were erased from her memory.”
“The police not only failed in their duty,” he stated, “but also leaked her name, thereby violating the law and severely violating her privacy.”
Nahmani-Bar also claimed that there are still details left unanswered in the investigation, including the suspect’s “problematic version” and exposed lies, and that he will consider filing an appeal after studying the details himself.
The investigation was opened in March 2025 after Schem arrived at the Tel Aviv North Police Station confused and claiming she did not have a memory of the incident. According to Schem, a friend of hers had found her in serious condition.
The official complaint stated that Schem felt confused and dysfunctional in the days following the incident. In an attempt to understand what had happened, she had arrived at her next training session accompanied by a friend, and only then decided to file an official complaint with the police.
The well-known trainer, whose name is withheld due to court orders, has coached many celebrities over the years, including models and a former prime minister.
Schem and the trainer reportedly knew each other beforehand. A few days before filing the police complaint, she reportedly invited him to her apartment for help with something personal, not for a training session.
Two sides to the story
Schem told police the trainer entered her bedroom, where the alleged assault took place, according to a Ynet report.
He had initially denied having entered her room, but later admitted to briefly stepping inside while Schem was changing clothes.
Schem described five signs she said supported her account, three physical signs on her body and two findings from medical tests. The trainer did not respond to these claims, instead repeating, “I’m a good person,” and at one point breaking down in tears, saying, “I have a family.”
The trainer was arrested on March 29, 2025, with several extensions being placed on his detention. On April 6, 2025, he was put under house arrest under the supervision of his family.
Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.