The Judge of the District Court in Nazareth contacted the Probation Services in order for them to prepare a report examining the possibility of releasing to house arrest Liad Adri, the young man accused of murdering 18-year-old Yoel Lehanghel.
According to the report of Mako news reporter Shimon Ifergan, the sensational turn came when during a hearing that took place today in the District Court in Nazareth regarding the extension of the detention of Liad Adri, the suspect in the murder of Yoel during a mass brawl in Kiryat Shmona, the judge stated that the evidence against the suspect Liad Adri is weak and therefore there is a need to examine his release for alternatives other than continued detention.
The judge stated during the hearing that: “There is a significant weakness in the evidence, which I have discussed above in detail, regarding the crime of murder regarding the involvement of the respondent (referring to the accused Adri) in the stabbing of the deceased. This weakness requires consideration of the possibility of the respondent’s release as an alternative to detention.”
Nazareth District Court Judge Arafat Taha reached this conclusion after examining the evidence in the case and the videos of the incident, the judge stated that: “From looking at the interrogation video where the stabbing is allegedly recorded, It is not possible to distinguish the moment of the stabbingit cannot be determined that the respondent (Liyad Adri) was holding the knife at that moment and it cannot be determined that he stabbed the deceased.” In addition to this determination, the judge continued and stated: “A careful viewing of the video shows that The respondent’s claim that he was not the one who stabbed the deceased is not devoid of foundation And apparently it is even more probable than the possibility that he is the stabber.”
These dramatic statements come after a few weeks ago, the North District Attorney’s Office decided to file an indictment for the murder of the late Yoel Lehanghel against Liad Adri, which occurred about five months earlier. According to the attorney’s office’s version of the indictment, Adri participated in a fight that broke out between dozens of young people, kicked the deceased and then pulled out a knife and stabbed him to death, in addition it is alleged in the indictment that Adri fled the scene, replaced his clothes with the blood of the murdered man, and hid the knife.
Adri, who is represented by attorney Zion Shimon, claimed during his investigation that he did not kill Yoel and even requested a polygraph test in order to establish his innocence, but his request was not approved. During the investigation, he claimed to the investigators, “The murderer is walking around freely, you just arrested me.”
Adv. Zion Shimon, Adri’s defense attorney, said that his client’s innocence “cries to the heavens” especially in the context of the news that another boy confessed to the murder during the investigation process. In addition, Adv. Zion Shimon stated: “The investigating unit put words to key witnesses and did everything they could, also in an unprovoked manner legal to incriminate the target. The court accepted our arguments and its decision to examine Liad’s release is the first swallow on the road to a resounding acquittal and harsh criticism of the investigators in this case.’
As part of Judge Arafat Taha’s decision, the probation service is expected to submit the report’s conclusions to the court within a few days, and then according to the report it will be decided whether Adri should be released to house arrest.