Man refused financial aid threatens to harm family

In separate incident, man breaks into a car, then turns himself over to police to receive medication that he could not afford

A man who was refused financial assistance by the National Insurance Institute on Tuesday morning said he was “fed up” and threatened to harm his wife and children.

When police located the 60-year-old resident of Migdal Haemek, he resisted arrest and attacked the officers. The police subdued and arrested him and his remand hearing was set for Wednesday in Nazareth Magistrates Court.

The incident came one day after Itamar Alon went on a shooting rampage at a branch of Bank Hapoalim in Beersheba, killing four people and then himself, after his request for a NIS 6,000 ($1,600) loan was rejected.

In a separate incident, a resident of Taibe on Monday turned himself in at the Kfar Saba police station and confessed to breaking into a car moments earlier. Police contacted the car owner and confirmed that the crime did, in fact, occur.

An investigation revealed that the man had been released from prison only a few days ago, and he arrived in Tel Aviv on Monday morning to buy medication that cost hundreds of shekels, which he did not have. He told police that, while in custody, he will be able to receive the medication free of charge, hence he broke into the vehicle for the purpose of being arrested afterwards.

Following Monday’s tragedy in Beersheba, some people drew the connection between incidents of violence and the increasingly harsh economic situation.

Shas party chairman Aryeh Deri said on Tuesday that “this shocking incident should be taken as a wake-up call. At the very least, this was a man who fell apart due to poverty.” Deri cautioned the government against passing “a brutal budget that could make thousands of new families join the ranks of the poor.”

Labor Party leader and opposition head Shelly Yachimovich rejected the connection between Alon’s deadly actions and his finances. She wrote on Facebook that ”murder is murder — going through a deep crisis doesn’t justify committing a massacre… The state is responsible for its citizens, but the individual is responsible for his own actions, too.