Ex-Cop Ordered to Pay $95,000 to Migrant Worker He Robbed
A former Israeli police officer has been ordered to pay 354,000 shekels (approximately $95,000 USD), plus interest and legal costs, to a migrant worker he robbed. The Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court ruled on Thursday that the ex-officer, Nazih Saab, must also pay 35,000 shekels for legal expenses.
The migrant worker, who was represented by attorneys Ariel Sarig and Assaf Lafler, sued Saab and the State of Israel. He claimed that in 2023, Saab, while on duty, stole 319,500 shekels from him. The worker was holding the money on behalf of other migrant laborers, primarily from Nepal and India, who entrusted him with their savings due to fears of theft and their inability to open bank accounts. The money was kept in a safe in an apartment on Levinsky Street in Tel Aviv.
According to the lawsuit, Saab entered the apartment, ordered everyone except the plaintiff to leave, and then searched the premises without a warrant. He discovered the cash and took a portion of it. Judge Avihay Bar-Kai described the allegations as particularly severe, calling it an "unusual incident where an officer in uniform entered and robbed the plaintiff of hundreds of thousands of shekels held by him in cash." Saab had previously been convicted in criminal proceedings related to these events as part of a plea deal.
The court found that while Saab generally denied the allegations, he did not provide a full factual account regarding the robbery. The judge noted that the only specific denial related to the plaintiff's status as a Nepali migrant worker living on Levinsky Street. Of the stolen funds, 165,000 shekels have been returned to the worker. The state had argued that a criminal restitution order covered 210,000 shekels, but the plaintiff clarified this amount was for multiple victims and his share was 165,000 shekels, a claim the judge found "certainly seems well-founded."
The plaintiff sought an additional 154,000 shekels for the remaining stolen funds, plus 200,000 shekels for false imprisonment, trespass, and emotional distress. The worker's attorneys stated that the ruling is a crucial first step in achieving justice, emphasizing the "horrific incident where an officer in uniform exploited his governmental power to rob, at gunpoint, all the savings of a helpless migrant worker." They added that beyond the financial loss, their client suffered immense psychological and moral damage, as the person meant to protect him became his "most cruel attacker."
The attorneys stressed the "full and heightened vicarious liability of the Israel Police and the State of Israel in this case," asserting that the state cannot evade responsibility when its executive arm becomes a tool for armed criminality. They vowed to continue the legal proceedings against the state to ensure adequate compensation for the "terrible moral injustice and the incomprehensible systemic failure."
