"Fell from the vehicle - and exploded in the heart of a residential neighborhood": Indictment for attempted assassination | Documentation

The State Attorney's Office filed indictments today (Thursday) at the Be'er Sheva District Court against three defendants involved in an attempted murder in Ashdod. The trio attached an explosive device to a vehicle against the backdrop of a criminal conflict, but the device fell during the drive and exploded on the street without causing loss of life.

The indictments reveal that the defendants—Matan Arbiv, Eviatar Zerach Yaakobi, and Natai Lagami—planned to murder an individual with whom they were in conflict. To carry out the act, they purchased tracking devices, motorcycles, and an explosive device. The defendants installed the trackers on two vehicles used by the target and his associates, allowing them to monitor movements via a mobile phone application.

On July 1st, early in the morning, Lagami and other accomplices arrived in Ashdod on motorcycles. They located one of the vehicles and attached the explosive device to its undercarriage. By the afternoon, they began tracking the vehicle with the intent to detonate the device. At that time, a person other than the intended target was driving. During the drive, the explosive device detached and fell onto the road. The perpetrators, failing to notice the fall, activated the device remotely about two minutes later.

The explosion occurred in the heart of a residential neighborhood. The force of the blast created a crater in the road, damaged parked cars, and shattered windows in nearby homes. Several residents on the street suffered hearing damage from the loud noise.

Immediately following the explosion, the perpetrators fled to a hideout apartment in Tirat Yehuda and burned the equipment used in an attempt to destroy evidence. Police raided the location during the night and arrested two of the suspects, while the third fled and was apprehended at a later stage.

In the request for detention until the end of the proceedings, the State Attorney's representative explained that the act would have resulted in the driver's death had it succeeded, adding that it was only by sheer luck that no passersby were injured. Arbiv and Lagami are charged with attempted murder, carrying a weapon, and obstruction of justice. Yaakobi is charged with aiding an attempted murder and other offenses related to the destruction of evidence.