Australia pleads for public’s help finding killer in Israeli woman’s slaying

Police in the Australian city of Melbourne said they were “desperate” to find the killer of Israeli university student Aiia Maasarwe, stepping up manpower and appealing directly to the public for help.

The body of 21-year-old Maasarwe, from the northern Israel town of Baqa al-Gharbiya. was found early Wednesday at a train station near the campus of the Melbourne university, following an attack described as “horrific.”

Homicide Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper said Thursday that police “are desperately in need” of the public’s help, asking for information about a black hat with “1986” stamped on it and a light gray t-shirt found at the scene.

“Somebody in the community knows who did this,” Stamper said. “Somebody has come home … maybe with blood them, missing items of clothing. Somebody knows about this and we need help.”

“Just the smallest piece of information might be that small piece of the jigsaw that we need to actually find the perpetrator for this horrendous crime,” he said.

Stamper did did not say how the murder was carried out or what the murder weapon was, but described the killing as an “absolutely horrendous, horrific attack.”

Maasarwe, who had been studying at La Trobe University in the city, was slain at 12:10 a.m. on Wednesday shortly after she got off a tram in the suburb of Bundoora, Stamper said.

Maasarwe was having a conversation with her sister when she was attacked on her way home from a comedy club, according to police.

The sister, Rouba Maasarwe told Israel’s Channel 13 news that she had been talking with her sister on Facetime, a video-call application, when the attack occurred.

“Suddenly I heard her scream. I heard the sound of a vehicles passing as if the phone were on the ground, and a large noise. It was as if the telephone had fallen out of her hand or someone grabbed it from her and threw it so she wouldn’t be able to call for help,” she said Thursday.

The family alerted police around the same time that Maasarwe’s body was found at 7 a.m. Wednesday near the tram stop. Police assume the attack was random and opportunistic.

The victim’s father Said Maasarwe told Channel 13 news that he had positively identified Aiia’s body in Melbourne and was attempting to get permission to bring her back to Israel for burial.

Police patrols and investigators have poured into the Bundoora area since Wednesday, coming the area for clues and searching for the killer.

Stamper said the the department’s priority “is to get this person off the streets.”

“We’ve got an ongoing effort to saturate the area as much as we possibly can,” Victoria Police Acting Superintendent Tony Ryan told national broadcaster ABC Friday.

“We understand this distresses the local community, and we understand our role in this, and that is we need to be in that area and we need to provide some comfort and some safety.”

Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison took to Twitter on Friday, calling the crime “an incredibly shocking, despicable and tragic attack.”

“My heart goes out to Aiia’s family and friends and everyone whose life she touched.”

Victoria state Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said the increased police presence in Bundoora, which is frequented by students, was also designed to reassure the community during the investigation.

“It is a terrible tragedy,” Mikakos, who lives in the Bundoora area, told reporters.

The killing has sent a shockwave through Melbourne, repeatedly ranked internationally as one of the world’s safest and most liveable cities, with the crime getting wide coverage in local and international media.

Local activists were arranging a vigil service to be held on the steps of the Victorian parliament on Friday night, with people to wear black and remain silent in protest against male harm towards women, SBS News reported.

Mourners will then fill the same route 86 tram Maasarwe took toward the Bundoora area of Melbourne with flowers before organizers of another social media group take them to her makeshift memorial.

La Trobe Vice-Chancellor John Dewar issued a statement of condolence and posted a video to reassure students and staff.

On behalf of @latrobe, and the Bundoora community, I express my deepest sympathies to the family, friends and teachers of Aiia Maasarwe.This is a tragic event that has deeply affected us all. We will do all we can to ensure that this never happens again.https://t.co/eEjbXKQiPC

— John Dewar (@johnnodvc) January 17, 2019

Agencies contributed to this report.