Two suspects were indicted Tuesday in the brutal murder of 21-year-old Tazera Takao on May 22.
According to police, the two suspects met Takao in an abandoned park near his Beit Shemesh home at 9 p.m. that Friday evening. They demanded he hand over any money he had on his person.
When Takao refused, one of the suspects picked up a rock and began beating him. The second suspect joined in until they had beaten him to death. They then inspected his pockets and took the 130 shekels ($35) they found there.
According to one police investigator quoted by Channel 2 television news, the suspects used the cash from the “cruel and especially brutal murder” to buy drugs.
Tazera “was 21,” his brother Nage said. “We can’t internalize this. Someone just murders a person.”
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition
by email and never miss our top stories
By signing up, you agree to the
terms
Rumors soon spread in the neighborhood as to the identity of the attackers. Days after the murder, one of the attackers was kidnapped by friends of Tazera, who took him to a nearby forest, bound him to a tree and interrogated him for information about the attack.
The kidnappers soon left the scene, leaving the suspected murderer tied to the tree. The latter soon freed himself and managed to stagger to a nearby road, where he was spotted by police and arrested.
Police have arrested the suspected kidnappers as well.
Is our live election coverage important to you?
Are you relying on The Times of Israel for accurate and timely coverage of the 2026 Israeli election? If so, please join The Times of Israel Community. For as little as $6/month, you will:
- Support our independent journalists who are working around the clock to report political developments as they unfold;
- Read ToI with a clear, ads-free experience on our site, apps and podcasts; and
- Gain access to exclusive content shared only with the ToI Community, including our DocuNation streaming film series and weekly letters from founding editor David Horovitz.
Join The Times of Israel Community
JOIN NOW
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this