JERUSALEM (JTA) — Two Israeli police officers convicted of leaving a Palestinian car thief to die were sentenced to 30 months in prison.
Assaf Yekutieli and Baruch Peretz were convicted in May by the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court of being responsible for the death of Abu Jariban when they dumped him on the side of the road two weeks after he was seriously injured in a car accident while driving a stolen vehicle. Jariban, of the Gaza Strip, was in Israel illegally when he was injured.
Jariban’s condition seemingly had stabilized and he was released from a hospital into the custody of the officers, who left him after discovering that there was no room for him at an Israel Prison Service’s medical facility. He was found dead two days later; the causes were exposure and dehydration.
The court said the sentence was more severe than those given in similar cases because of the officers’ appalling behavior.
Attorneys for Yekutieli and Peretz said they would appeal the ruling.
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