Bank killer had a history of personal, financial trouble

Itamar Alon, unemployed and living with his parents, told hostage the shootings were retribution for his being turned down for a loan

Details about the personal and financial woes of the former Border Police officer who killed four people in a shooting rampage began to emerge in the hours after the incident Monday.

Itamar Alon shot up a Bank Hapoalim branch in Beersheba after a series of financial setbacks, eventually taking his own life following a standoff with police.

Miri Cohen, a bank employee who was taken hostage for about an hour, said that Alon alluded to the fact that his actions were retribution for the bank’s decision not to approve him for a NIS 6,000 loan ($1,600), she said during an interview on Channel 2 News.

“I’m going to show you — and do to you what you did to me. I’ll show you,” Cohen said Alon told her, likely referring to the bank’s decision to close his credit line.

Once a decorated officer, Alon was discharged a decade ago and saw his life spiral downwards to the point where he was unemployed and unable to sort out a debt with the bank.

After entering the bank at around 1 p.m. Monday, Alon killed Avner Cohen, 40, the branch manager, who is survived by his wife and three kids, ages 6, 13, and 18.

Cohen’s aunt, Zahava Tapiro, was the last family member to see Cohen before he died. Tapiro told Ynet News that she had come to the branch in the morning, and that she and Cohen sat together for a while, sharing jokes and laughter. Tapiro invited him to her son’s wedding, at which point Cohen asked his aunt if she needed money through the period. “I was ashamed to say ‘yes,’ ” Tapiro explained, “so he sent me to another branch, essentially saving me from being killed.”

Tapiro said she was about to return to the bank when her husband called and told her what had happened.

Anat Ben-Haim, 34, a client of the bank, was also killed; she leaves behind an 11-year-old daughter and 4-year-old twins.

Meir Zeitoun, 40, a deputy manager at the bank, also a father of three, was another one of the four victims.

The fourth victim, Idan Savri, was 22 years old.

Alon had received a medal from former Beersheba mayor Jacob Turner for his bravery during a terror attack 11 years ago. Two terrorists reached an army base in the south and opened fire on soldiers, killing several. Alon, then an officer in the army, rushed to the scene and returned fire on the terrorists, helping to kill one of them.

Yet he was released from the army about a year later, after his superiors received complaints about him and his communication style. Alon, who was described by coworkers as “aloof and rigid,” was reportedly let go due to poor relations with his colleagues, according to media reports.

After being released from the Border Police about 10 years ago, Alon began working as a security officer for the Beersheba municipality.

An incident that has been described as a turning point in his life was when he attended a Purim celebration at a school in Beersheba a few years ago wearing a “fake explosive belt,” causing the principal to strongly rebuke him. The two had a heated argument, which allegedly turned to threats, and the incident was considered a “watershed” moment that drove him over the edge, an unnamed source told Ynet.

He later was unemployed and moved in with his parents, who were described by neighbors as loving, normal, and kind. A neighbor told Channel 2 News that Alon would often sit on the porch and sing.

Alon reportedly had a license for his firearm.