"I am in love with him": The forbidden relationship of the prison officer suspected of aiding the brother of the murder suspect
Exclusive: Ynet has obtained transcripts of the interrogation of the Israel Prison Service (IPS) officer who allegedly allowed the brother of the main suspect in the murder of Binyahu Razi to contact him by phone while he was on the run. "By nature, he is a great person," the officer said about the prisoner with whom she had a romantic relationship. She denied the allegations against her and claimed she had witnessed others crossing boundaries: "I have seen countless judges, prosecutors, and police officers who broke the law right before my eyes."
Already at the beginning of her interrogation, when asked about her personal life, the Israel Prison Service (IPS) officer who had a romantic relationship with the brother of the murder suspect Binyahu Razi replied directly: "If I am in love with someone, is that a relationship?". The investigator asked: "Who are you in love with?", and the officer answered: "You know", and then explicitly said: "It is about Avi'or's brother". By this, the interrogated officer meant Avi'or Sasson (17), the main suspect in the murder of the young man Razi in the Nachlaot neighborhood of Jerusalem. His brother is a prisoner who was in a relationship with the officer, who is suspected of breach of trust and obstruction of justice.
Shocking composure and zero remorse: interrogations of the suspects in the murder of Binyahu Razi. The officer, a 34-year-old from the central region, held a senior position in the wing of Hadarim Prison where the brother of the murder suspect is held. According to the suspicion, while Avi'or was wanted by the police and on the run for days, she allowed his brother, who is serving a sentence for extortion, to contact him by phone. During her interrogation, a much more unusual relationship between her and the prisoner was revealed: she admitted that she fell in love with him, kissed him many times in her office, was in contact with his family members, and even considered leaving the IPS to be with him. Alongside all this, she strongly rejected the suspicion that she helped Avi'or continue his escape.
The officer said she met Avi'or's brother after he was transferred to the wing she was responsible for about two months earlier. By virtue of her position, she handled, among other things, his requests and transfers. When asked what she found in him, the officer replied: "From my point of view, by nature he is a great person, smart, has values, understands that his path was not good, does not mess around with nonsense, helped those in the wing who needed it. The whole wing loves him, they trust him."
"I love the mother". Later in her interrogation, the officer admitted that the feelings were mutual. According to her, the two talked a lot about the possibility of being together after the release of the murder suspect's brother in about two years. She even told the investigator that she considered resigning from the Prison Service for his sake. In an unusual moment in the interrogation, the following question was directed at her: "What is the furthest you have gone with the prisoner?". The officer replied that she and he "kissed a lot" in her office. According to her, the partition was open and she does not usually close the door.
The connection did not end within the prison walls. The officer admitted that she was also in contact with the prisoner's family members. After Razi's murder, she said she called Avi'or's and the prisoner's sister up to five times to ask how she was doing. The officer also confirmed that she was in contact with their mother, Linor Sasson (46), who is accused in the murder case of aiding after the fact and obstruction of justice. When asked why she spoke with her, the officer replied: "Because I love her". The officer admitted that the conversations with the family members were not part of her duties, but claimed that this is not unusual behavior: "Lots of wings do this".
The investigator replied that even if others maintain forbidden relationships, in her case the details were revealed in the investigation. The officer did not retract the relationship, said she "stands behind it", and emphasized that these are her feelings. But at the heart of the investigation was a much more serious suspicion: did the forbidden relationship with the prisoner also turn into help for his brother Avi'or, who was, as mentioned, on the run from the police at that time. The officer confirmed in her interrogation that she knew Avi'or was wanted by the police: "I know that Avi'or is running from the police, the whole country knows". When asked if she believes the police are looking for him because of his involvement in the murder, the officer replied: "What does believe mean? It is published everywhere".
The officer admitted that she talked to the prisoner about the murder case and his brother's situation, but claimed she did not know where Avi'or was hiding. According to her, from the concern the prisoner showed, she got the impression that he also did not know where his brother Avi'or was. "If he is a man, let him come and turn himself in," she said about Avi'or. Later she added in her interrogation that if she knew where he was hiding - "I would have directed you (the investigator) to him".
Police investigators accused the officer of passing messages between the prisoner and his family members, and examined how the prisoner could have made contact outside the prison. The officer strongly denied that she gave him a phone or any other means to make calls, and denied that she passed messages related to Avi'or's escape. According to the officer, the only messages she passed between the prisoner and his mother were that he loves her. At one point, the officer was asked in the interrogation if WhatsApp conversations were also documented. The officer replied in the negative, and then burst out: "What am I, a criminal? How would I know?". The investigator reminded her that she serves in the security forces, and that it is known that criminals use communication apps. Later, the officer confirmed that she knows that criminals also use Telegram.
"I did not cut corners". In another unusual part of the interrogation, the officer tried to explain her conduct against the background of what she claimed she saw throughout her years of service. She said that for 13 years she maintained her integrity and "did not cut corners". However, in the same breath, she claimed that she was a witness time after time to system personnel who crossed the line themselves: "I have seen countless judges, prosecutors, and police officers who broke the law right before my eyes". Later, the officer hastened to clarify that from her point of view, the fact that others acted this way does not make the actions legitimate. "It does not mean it's okay, but there are quantities of it," the officer noted in her interrogation.
According to the officer, she knew very well that the relationship she maintained with the prisoner was not proper. At the end of her interrogation, it was decided to release her under restrictive conditions, and in the IPS, it was decided to place her on forced leave. The serious suspicions attributed to her continue to be investigated.
IPS spokesperson, Colonel Zivan Freidin, stated: "The Israel Prison Service continues to prove its intelligence superiority, as the intelligence system operates continuously at all levels of the organization and also exposes criminal activity conducted from within detention facilities. The organization condemns any suspicion of compromising integrity and acts with zero tolerance towards any deviation. In accordance with the policy of the Prison Commissioner, the organization continues to strengthen control and supervision mechanisms, including promoting polygraph tests in the organization".
Dror Shalom, the officer's lawyer, responded: "The case regarding my client has not yet ended. My client cooperated fully. I am confident that the case will be closed soon. I suggest waiting for the results of the investigation before blackening my client's name".
