Thursday, July 18, 2019, 18:05 Honenu Attorney Chayim Bleicher demanded that the the Iron Police Department of Investigations investigate a hit and run collision in which a Jewish motorcyclist was moderately injured by a car driven by minorities. In his letter Bleicher called on the authorities to “act with all resources to apprehend the suspects,” and to inform him of any developments in the investigation.
The collision; Video credit: Lior Mizrahi
The collision occurred on the night of Tuesday, July 9, on Route 65 near the Arab town Kafr Qara. The letter states that, “A car driven by minorities intentionally hit my client’s motorcycle while he was riding it. My client was traveling on Route 65, in the right lane, when suddenly a white Mercedes recklessly entered his traffic lane, cutting him off.”
Furthermore, “My client continued riding and noticed that the [Mercedes] vehicle recklessly cut off additional vehicles. When the traffic slowed down slightly my client passed the [Mercedes] vehicle and signaled the driver to drive safely. Then the passengers of the vehicle opened their windows, cursed my client and made obscene hand gestures. One of the passengers also leaned part of his body out of the window.”
After several seconds “the [Mercedes] vehicle entered my client’s traffic lane, hit him and fled the scene while my client lay injured on the side of the road. My client was moderately injured and evacuated to the HaEmek Hospital. This was an extremely serious incident of an intentional injury by a vehicle and abandonment of an injured person.” In conclusion Bleicher demanded that the Iron Police Department of Investigations “act with all resources to apprehend the suspects.”
The injured motorcyclist, Lior Mizrahi, aged 50 and a father of six, related the incident: “I was traveling northbound on Route 65 when suddenly a white Mercedes snuck up on me and cut me off. There was only a pace between us. I slowed down and turned on my camera in order to record the license plate number. When we approached the next intersection, Kafr Qara, the [Mercedes] vehicle slowed down and when I pulled up next to it they still had not calmed down. They opened the windows and inside the vehicle I identified four or five minorities who started to curse and act crazy. One of them even stuck his head out of the window.”
Mizrahi described the final moments before the collision: “Suddenly the driver swerved his vehicle towards me, cut right, collided with me in motion, and threw me. I landed sprawled on the road and the motorcycle continued to roll. They simply kept driving. They have no problem with murdering someone. It’s incredible, the ease with which passers-by can be murdered. I have six children. To think of what could have been in another second…”
The injured motorcyclist went to the police, but he is not aware of any progress in the investigation: “I tried to make contact with the police, to receive information about whether or not they [the suspects] had been apprehended. As of now I haven’t been informed of anything, and I don’t know what is happening. There is a video clip that I filmed, and one sees the car colliding with the motorcycle. I am currently hospitalized at the HaEmek Hospital. I have injuries on my entire left side. To think that the story could have ended differently is shocking to me.”
Honenu Attorney Chayim Bleicher, who is representing Lior Mizrahi and assisting him with realizing his rights as a crime victim, stated that, “This is an extremely serious incident. Reckless driving, a potentially lethal collision with a motorcycle and fleeing the scene after the motorcyclist had crashed on the shoulder of the road. This was a dangerous crime by dangerous criminals. We expect the police to do their job properly, to find the criminals and to have them stand trial. We will do everything in our power towards that end.”