Security footage released on Sunday shows a man from Netivot in his 20s breaking into a local business in the city, setting a fire, stealing an electric ATV, and fleeing as the blaze spreads. The video was filmed in mid-May at 4:02 a.m., when the suspect is seen moving to a corner of the compound, igniting a strong fire, and then riding away on the stolen vehicle.
By 4:09 a.m., the site is already engulfed in thick smoke, and the entire building and its contents are later destroyed. The damage is estimated at more than 1 million shekels. According to police, the suspect also hid the stolen ATV afterward in an apparent attempt to obstruct the investigation and erase evidence.
Officers from the Netivot police station launched what the report describes as an intensive, technologically assisted investigation, gathering evidence from the scene and tracing the suspect. He was eventually arrested and questioned. After investigators assembled a solid evidentiary foundation, the Southern District Prosecutor’s Office (Criminal) filed a serious indictment with the Beersheba District Court.
The charges include arson, burglary of a non-residential building, theft, and obstruction of justice. Netivot police commander Superintendent Adi Bohbot said the case was handled professionally and with determination, adding that officers worked “without rest” from the moment the report came in, and would continue acting against anyone who harms public safety, property, or residents’ sense of security.
