Jerusalem Crime Boss Itzik Bar Mocha Survives Assassination Attempt

A car bomb injured veteran criminal Itzik Bar Mocha and his 13-year-old son in Jerusalem's Armon Hanatziv neighborhood on Tuesday. Police were not surprised by the attempt on Bar Mocha, a former Jerusalem gang leader with a long history of criminal activity and numerous enemies. Investigators are currently trying to determine who is behind the attack, which comes amid Bar Mocha's decades-long involvement in the underworld, including his role in the 2003 Bank Leumi theft.

Bar Mocha began his criminal career in the 1990s in Jerusalem, leading a group of local criminals, including the Malka brothers, who later became his rivals. His gang engaged in extortion, protection rackets, and illegal gambling. Police described him as someone who "chose murderous violence as a way of life." He was convicted in 2003 for managing illegal casinos, threatening and extorting Maximov over gambling debts, and receiving millions of shekels known to be stolen, receiving a 13-year sentence.

Even from prison, Bar Mocha allegedly continued to manage his criminal networks using smuggled phones and external contacts, leading to extended sentences and solitary confinement. Upon his release in 2016, police prevented his return to Jerusalem, prompting him to move to Yavne. However, he allegedly continued his criminal activities there, facing charges in 2018 for extortion and manufacturing a bomb intended for a rival, resulting in another 5-year prison sentence. He was released in late 2022 and returned to Yavne.

His move to Yavne was seen as an attempt to establish a new base in territory without an active crime group, potentially clashing with established criminal alliances in the region, including those associated with Shalom Domrani and groups in Ashdod and Rehovot. Bar Mocha is considered a primary target by both the Jerusalem and Central District police units, with frequent surveillance and searches of his associates.

Investigators are exploring multiple potential motives and perpetrators, including old rivals from Jerusalem, associates from the southern region, and former allies like Ouda Koteir, with whom Bar Mocha had a falling out after a period of close association. The investigation is being conducted jointly by the Jerusalem and Central District police.