Man charged over Holon road rage murder; told friend he was ‘dying to stab someone’
According to the indictment, Adi Mizrahi stabbed Yuri Volkov in the heart with the intention of killing him; prosecutors say suspect is ‘highly dangerous’
A man was indicted Thursday over the murder of a man in a road rage incident in Holon last month that shocked the country.
Adi Mizrahi, 23, is accused of stabbing Yuri Volkov to death after a brief confrontation when he carried out an illegal maneuver with his moped, endangering pedestrians crossing a road.
Mizrahi is also accused of making threats, conspiracy to commit a crime, destruction of evidence and obstruction of justice.
Police had initially said Mizrahi would face a manslaughter indictment but made a quick U-turn amid public outcry.
According to the indictment filed at the Tel Aviv District Court, Mizrahi was carrying a sharp object hidden in his clothes at the time of the killing. He also told an acquaintance that he was “dying to stab someone.”
“The respondent murdered the deceased in the middle of a busy and crowded intersection, casually, without any real reason, and without the deceased having done anything to him,” the indictment read. “This shows a severe and serious disconnect from the sanctity of human life.”
Mizrahi is “highly dangerous,” the indictment read, seen both in the fact that he murdered a stranger with whom there he had had no physical confrontation, and because he “acted coldly” to hide the evidence.
According to the indictment, on the day of the murder, Mizrahi was driving at high speed as he approached the junction in Holon. He drove across the crosswalk, ignoring a red light.
When Volkov’s wife Lena noticed that Mizrahi was endangering pedestrians, she took a picture of him with her cellphone and said goodbye to her husband, who was heading in a different direction.
Mizrahi noticed Lena taking the photo and approached her, blocking her path and demanding she delete the photo. Yuri Volkov realized what was happening and went over to his wife. He asked Mizrahi what had happened.
Volkov stood between his wife and Mizrahi and asked him to move on.
Mizrahi then removed a sharp object from his clothes and stabbed Volkov in the heart with the intention of killing him, prosecutors said. Mizrahi fled on his moped as Volkov took a few steps before collapsing. He was declared dead at the hospital.
The entire incident was captured on dashcam footage from a nearby vehicle.
Mizrahi was arrested a day after the killing at a home in Holon, during which a “dangerous breed” dog jumped on the arresting officers and bit two of them, injuring one moderately and the other lightly, according to police.
In response to the announcement of the indictment, Volkov’s family said that they would not settle for anything less than a life sentence without parole for Mizrahi.
In the wake of the murder, family and coworkers eulogized Volkov, who worked as a healthcare aide. In an interview with 103FM Radio, Shira Peleg, who worked as Yuri’s direct manager at the hospital, described him as a “sensitive and humble” person who was always trying to help others.
“Yuri worked at the hospital’s emergency room for nearly 20 years, helping nurses… He really was one of the most humane people one can imagine,” Peleg said. “We’re heartbroken.”
The killing came amid a spate of high-profile road rage incidents that have shocked the nation.
