Indictment Filed Over Deadly Collapse in Mea Shearim

The Jerusalem District Attorney's Office filed an indictment today with the District Court against contractor Eiman Hammad, 49, on charges of causing death by negligence, over the collapse of a wall in Mea Shearim that killed yeshiva student Itzik Steinberger, 25, in January 2024.

According to the indictment, Hammad carried out renovation work on the building in violation of construction regulations. He built formwork on only one side of the wall, while the other side relied on the wall of the old building. In addition, he poured all the concrete at once instead of gradually, and did not check the load on the pour or the strength of the structure beforehand. As a result, the old wall could not bear the load, collapsed onto Steinberger while he was sleeping during the afternoon in his room, and buried his body under the rubble and concrete. He was evacuated to the hospital and died of severe head injuries.

At the end of May, the prosecution closed the case against the property owner on the grounds of lack of guilt. The indictment filed today therefore focuses on the contractor alone, whom prosecutors say bears direct responsibility for the disaster.