Crime

Tel Aviv: Prime suspect of 2009 LGBT youth centre shooting named

Jun 11 2013
Written by Scott Roberts

A court has lifted an order allowing for the name of the prime suspect charged in relation to the fatal 2009 shooting at a Tel Aviv LGBT youth centre to be published.

He can been named as 23-year-old Hagai Felician from Pardes Katz, whose relative was allegedly molested by the intended target, a gay rights activist.

A person described as a “senior member of the gay community” is also under arrest, but cannot be named for legal reasons.

It is alleged a sexual assault carried out by the unnamed activist led Felician, who was a soldier at the time, to carry out a revenge attack at the Bar Noar LGBT youth centre.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said on Friday that the motive behind the killing was of a personal nature. He said the suspects intended to shoot someone else at the centre. Instead, they opened fire on the two people they killed.

Nir Katz, 26, and Liz Trubeshi, 16, were killed in August 2009 when a masked gun man dressed head to toe in black entered the venue, underneath Cafe Noir in Tel Aviv, 28 Nachmani Street at the junction with Ahad Ha’am Street.

Police arrested four suspects last week in connection with the killing.