Cop who shot dead Ethiopian teen said to face more questions from investigators

Police Internal Investigations Department reportedly takes unusual step of interviewing suspect on two occasions under caution despite completion of probe

By ToI Staff 30 August 2019, 9:45 am

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Family and friends mourn at the funeral of Solomon Tekah, in Kiryat Haim, on July 2, 2019. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Investigators twice questioned under caution a police officer who shot dead an Ethiopian teenager in June, even though the probe into the case has already been formally completed, Haaretz reported Friday.

Solomon Tekah, 19, was shot dead by an off-duty officer in Haifa on June 30. The policeman, who has not publicly been named, has maintained he was trying to break up a street fight and was set upon by three youths who hurled stones at him, endangering his life. The officer says he fired a shot at the ground and the bullet apparently ricocheted up hitting Tekah.

According to the report, the legal division of the Police Internal Investigations Department, a Justice Ministry body, ordered further questioning of the officer.

During questioning earlier this week, the police officer maintained his version of events that Tekah threw rocks at him and that he opened fire because he feared for his life, sources familiar with the latest development told Haaretz.

Ethiopian-Israeli Solomon Tekah who was shot dead by an off-duty policeman in Kiryat Haim on June 30, 2019. (Courtesy)

PIID declined to comment on the reported questioning sessions, but has previously concluded that the officer fired at the ground.

Although the PIID is said to be leaning towards charging the officer with negligent manslaughter it is also reportedly mulling the more serious charge of reckless homicide.

A final decision will taken by PIID director Keren Bar Menachem and State Prosecutor Shai Nitzan.

In July Channel 12 TV news reported that an autopsy found the bullet ricocheted off the ground before killing him, corroborating the officer’s account.

A car is seen on fire after its driver was attacked during a protest following the death of 19-year-old Ethiopian, Solomon Tekah who was shot and killed few days ago in Kiryat Haim by an off-duty police officer, in Tel Aviv, July 2, 2019. (Adam Shuldman/Flash90)

The killing of Tekah sparked nationwide protests, which at times turned violent and saw damage to property. The incident immediately sparked renewed accusations of police brutality and racism toward the Ethiopian community. Days after the shooting, protesters across Israel blocked roads, burned tires and denounced what they said is systemic discrimination against Israelis of Ethiopian descent.

Reckless homicide carries a sentence of up to 12 years in jail. This new categorization, which came into existence in a July justice system reform, is applicable when a suspect is thought to have taken an unreasonable risk but without the intention of causing death — e.g., playing with a loaded weapon or driving dangerously.