Police issued gag order on Mali and Liel Yahalomi case so they wouldn’t change their plans

Police understood early in their investigation of the disappearance of Mali and Liel Yahalomi last week that the two had intentionally fled Vienna, and issued a gag order on the case so they wouldn’t change their plans, according to Hebrew media outlets on Saturday.

The mother and daughter were found in Argentina, police said Friday, after their mysterious disappearance set off a flurry of speculation and rumors and a major international investigation.

According to reports, the two had begun planning their departure about a month ago and asked Gemini, Google’s AI chatbot, for advice about how to move to another location without being traced.

Investigators were able to get hold of their chatbot history, aiding in their probe, the Kan public broadcaster reported.

A day before leaving Israel, the mother withdrew about 14,000 euros ($16,300) in cash, reports said. After leaving Vienna, the two stopped in the Czech Republic, Austria and Germany before flying to South America. Upon arriving in Prague, they sent their family a video they had taken in Vienna. Then they turned off their phones, in order to block tracing of their movements, and began using new phones they purchased there.

A breakthrough in the investigation came when investigators determined that the women had boarded a flight from Frankfurt to Buenos Aires. After they landed, an Israeli police representative in South America, Walter Kogan, was alerted, and Argentine police stopped them using undercover vehicles.

????New footage shows Mali and Liel Yahalomi being questioned after they were located in Argentina by Superintendent Walter Alejandro Kogan, the Israel Police representative in Latin America. pic.twitter.com/73KJiTcgWf

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Kogan boarded the bus they were on and confronted the women, who were shocked to encounter a Hebrew-speaking Israeli police officer. After a brief questioning of the women, he concluded that they had left Israel of their own free will, not under threat of violence.

“We simply want to disconnect from the family, from the country,” they were quoted by Channel 12 news as telling Kogan.

“Is someone threatening you? Trying to blackmail you?” Kogan reportedly asked.

“No, nobody,” they were said to reply.

“Are you fleeing because of debt?” he reportedly asked.

“No, we just want to leave everything,” they said, according to the report.

Israeli investigators wanted to question the women more extensively but were prevented from doing so by Argentine authorities, according to a source quoted by Channel 12.

Family members of the mother and daughter told Hebrew media they were “shocked” by the discovery that they had planned to flee Israel without telling them, even as they expressed relief that they were found safe.

An online crowdfunding campaign that had raised nearly NIS 300,000 ($100,000) for the investigation of their disappearance issued an update with an apology, telling donors that all money will be returned in the coming week.

Hebrew media reports quoted police sources saying they had left Israel and made their way to Argentina to disappear and “start a new life.”

Reports on Saturday evening quoted police sources saying they were planning to obtain fake passports with new identities, and denying that they fled Israel because of debts.

The Yahalomis’ disappearance captivated the nation, with rampant speculation about the cause, including terrorism, abduction, and even an elaborate embezzlement scheme. Shares in the Bank of Jerusalem, where Mali is employed, briefly dipped sharply on Thursday amid the spread of unsubstantiated rumors that she had taken vast sums from the bank before fleeing.