Soldier, 3 minors said arrested in suspected gang rape of 14-year-old in Eilat
Gag order imposed on details of latest alleged sexual assault case to rock resort city; suspects deny allegations
Police arrested four teens in the alleged rape of a 14-year-old girl at a vacation rental in Eilat, Hebrew media reported Wednesday.
The arrests were made after the girl filed a police report on Saturday alleging that three 17-year-olds and an 18-year-old soldier raped her on Friday night in the resort city, according to reports in several Hebrew-language outlets.
The suspects have reportedly denied the allegations. Police said Wednesday that the case was under a court-imposed gag order.
According to Channel 12 news, the alleged victim told investigators that she knew one of the suspects and had invited him to the apartment, where she had been staying. She reportedly said that he unexpectedly arrived with three of his friends.
Following the alleged rape, the victim went to a hospital and took a rape test, the channel reported.
Assi Levi, a lawyer for the 18-year-old suspect, identified his client as a soldier with no criminal record, and said he denied the allegations against him.
“We are waiting for the police to complete the investigation as soon as possible,” Levi said.
According to reports, the soldier was ordered held in police detention until Sunday. It was unclear if the minor suspects also remained in custody.
Kobi Balaban, the lawyer for one of the 17-year-old suspects, said in a statement that his client was cooperating with the investigation.
“He has no criminal record and completely denies his involvement in the incident,” Balaban said.
The Police Spokesperson’s Unit confirmed that an investigation was being conducted by the Eilat Regional Police.
It said the Eilat Magistrate’s Court had placed the details of the investigation under a gag order.
Eilat, a Red Sea beach town on Israel’s southern tip, typically swells with vacationers during the Passover holiday, which ended Saturday.
The allegations come six months after the Beersheba District Court sentenced several people convicted in an August 2020 rape of a 16-year-old girl at the Red Sea Hotel in Eilat, in a case that shocked the country.
Issy Raphaelov, 31 and Eliezer Meirav, 30, as well as two minors, both aged 17, were convicted of rape, sexual assault, gang rape and a host of other crimes against the victim.
Another seven people, many of them minors, were also convicted of aiding the assault, failing to stop the act, and other charges.
In November, two men from Sderot were arrested in the suspected rape of a 14-year-old girl, also while on vacation in Eilat, according to the Ynet news website.
Indictments have not yet been filed in the case, the outlet reported Wednesday.
The Times of Israel Community.