Fiancee Of Settler Youth Killed In Police Ramming Humiliated During Police Interrogation

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — A week after the tragic death of Ahuvia Sandak, who was killed when a police car rammed into the car he was travelling in during a high-speed chase, the affair is still making waves in Israel. Settlers and their lawyers claim that police intentionally rammed the car in which Sandak and his friends, who were accused of throwing stones at Arab cars, were travelling. Sandak was thrown from the car and pronounced dead at the scene, while four of his friends were lightly injured.

Police have since charged the youths with the reckless death of their friend, exacerbating tensions between police and settlers, who claim that the police are trying to cover up their own misdemeanors by framing the settlers for the death of their friend.

In the meantime, Sandak’s fiancee, Shalhevet Goldstein, wished to retrieve his Tefillin from the police. After a meeting was set up by Gush Etzion regional head Shlomo Neeman, Goldstein arrived at the central unit of Tel Aviv police which is investigating the case. Instead of giving her the Tefillin, police interrogated her for 3 hours, attempting to obtain testimony from her and depicting Ahuvia in a humiliating manner.

“When I arrived at the station, they suddenly told me that ‘we need a little testimony from you and then we will give you the Tefillin’, Shalhevet recalled. “I didn’t understand what was happening. They tried to take my cellphone away from me and I refused. They forced me to take it off and then interrogated me for 3 hours.

“During the entire interrogation they were shouting at me and asking personal questions like: “How long have you known each other? How much did you meet? What was the nature of your relationship. I said that this was irrelevant and none of their business but they attacked me, stating that ‘you’re acting like a criminal, impertinent girl.’ The interrogator said that I was lying and other harsh claims and they told me that Ahuvia was evil-hearted, stingy and other things. They really disparaged both me and him.”

Attorney Adi Keidar from the Choneinu organization said that “police are now trying to disparage Ahuvia Z’l and all those around him including his fiancee, family and friends. In this way the police and investigators are attempting to cruelly abuse people, this is a dangerous phenomenon which demonstrates the lack of objectivity in this investigation which must be stopped.”

Police however claimed that the investigation is being conducted professionally and with the appropriate sensitivity in order to reach the truth.