Ben Gvir’s driver indicted for reckless driving over crash while chauffeuring minister
According to charges, Moshe Eichenstein drove ‘recklessly’ without paying attention to the road; his lawyer alleges a political hit job
An indictment was filed Sunday against the driver of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir for running a red light while chauffeuring the minister, leading to a crash in which the driver of another vehicle was injured.
Moshe Eichenstein is accused of driving through a red light, reckless driving, and behavior that caused bodily harm.
His lawyer denounced the charges, and attributed the indictment to a “media obsession” with the April crash.
The incident, in which the minister’s vehicle hit that of Idan Domatov, badly injuring his knee, took place as Ben Gvir was leaving the site of a terrorist attack in Ramle.
Ben Gvir, who himself has a long history of traffic offenses and has been repeatedly criticized for filming himself in transit as a minister while not wearing a seatbelt, has maintained that Eichenstein was not responsible for the accident.
Haaretz reported in May that security guards for Ben Gvir said his drivers continue to break traffic laws under the minister’s instruction, even after the accident in Ramle, including driving at excessive speeds, running red lights and driving on the hard shoulder of the road when there is no operational need to do so.
According to the indictment filed in the Petah Tikva Traffic Court, “Eichenstein drove recklessly, crossing the stop line and entering the intersection without paying attention to the road or the other cars on it. He didn’t notice the involved vehicle in time and he did not slow down.”
Domatov, who sustained a serious injury to his knee as a result of the accident, requiring surgery and rendering him temporarily immobile, lauded the indictment.
“I’m glad that the truth has come out, they finally understood who was to blame and who was not,” he told Channel 12.
“In the last few weeks, I’ve been able to return to my business, to the barbershop, where I meet people whom I love so much. We took a serious blow half a year ago, but despite it all, we’re standing on our feet,” he said.
In a video posted online, Domatov’s lawyer Rafat Asadi also welcomed the charges. “Finally, we have managed to convince the police to file an indictment against the one responsible for the accident,” he said.
Asadi thanked the police and said that he and his client “have no grudge” against the force, which is overseen by Ben Gvir in his capacity as national security minister.
“We were certain the police would carry out their work without bias, and indeed they did,” Asadi said.
Meanwhile, Eicheinstein’s lawyer, Shosh Hayoun, denounced the charges, accusing the press of a political hit job against her client due to his connection to Ben Gvir.
“The media abandoned values and chose, at a time of war, to put pressure on police to prosecute a combat soldier [who is also] the son of a combat soldier, just to hurt Ben Gvir,” she alleged in a statement.
“My client, along with his father and four brothers, is fighting for the state and continues even now to serve in reserve duty in Gaza and in the north, and they will continue to serve the state and to fight to defend it, as well as for the truth to come out,” she said.
“If this were [Opposition Leader Yair] Lapid’s driver, there wouldn’t be the same media obsession that has led to an indictment without any evidentiary basis and which will end in an acquittal,” the statement concluded.
Ben Gvir himself suffered broken ribs as a result of the crash, and spent two days hospitalized. His daughter was also lightly hurt in the incident.
A similar incident to the April crash occurred in August 2023, when Ben Gvir’s car drove through a red light in the Jerusalem neighborhood of French Hill and collided with another vehicle carrying a family including three children. No one was injured in that accident.
The minister was apparently on his way to an interview with Channel 13 news at the time.
