Policeman being probed after alleged car thief shot dead

Justice Ministry’s Police Investigations Department launches inquiry into shooting death of an east Jerusalem car thief during his arrest in Tel Aviv.

By YAAKOV LAPPIN
gun and ammo 248.88 (photo credit: Israel Police )
gun and ammo 248.88
(photo credit: Israel Police )
The Justice Ministry’s Police Investigations Department has launched an inquiry into the shooting death of an east Jerusalem car thief during his arrest in Tel Aviv on Monday morning.
Police said two Tel Aviv patrol officers working to thwart car theft in the Tzahala neighborhood of north Tel Aviv spotted “a gang of four suspects, residents of east Jerusalem, handling three stolen vehicles.
“Officers engaged the suspects and arrested three of them, while the fourth escaped. During the arrest, a bullet was accidentally discharged from the handgun of an officer, which struck one of the suspects,” police added.
The officer under investigation is F.-Sgt. Bora Ratzon, a veteran policeman described by colleagues as “esteemed and professional.”
Ratzon said the bullet was accidentally discharged when he had tried to unload his handgun. Ratzon’s attorney, Ophir Naria-Katz, said her client was cooperating fully with the PID.
The wounded man was treated by paramedics, but was declared dead on the scene shortly after being shot.
Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch said following the incident, “the war against crime is complex and not sterile, but every incident must be investigated until unequivocal conclusions are reached.”