Ex-Partner’s Threats Revealed Before Leah Malka’s Fatal Car Bombing in Israel

Leah Malka Cohen, a 35-year-old woman from Rishon Lezion, was killed on June 4 when a bomb exploded in her car on Highway 20 near the Holon interchange. She was rushed to the hospital in critical condition and later died. The investigation into her murder is ongoing.

Her ex-partner, Chen Cohen, who was arrested on suspicion of involvement in the killing, was released to house arrest after nearly a month in custody. Authorities emphasized that his release does not indicate a drop in suspicion, and the probe continues. Alongside the murder investigation, a new indictment was filed against Chen Cohen for multiple threats made over approximately three months before the murder.

The indictment details a prolonged campaign of threats sent via dozens of messages to Leah and her parents amid a custody dispute over their two-year-old daughter. On March 20 alone, Chen Cohen sent 95 WhatsApp messages to Leah’s father, Yaakov Malka, including menacing statements such as “You won’t see your child,” “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a child for a child,” and “From Saturday night there is a green light on all of you.” Similar threats were sent to Leah’s mother, including warnings to “sleep with your eyes open.”

On April 29, Cohen sent threatening messages directly to Leah, warning her not to endanger her father. The following day, he left a voice message vowing, “I swear she will die if you don’t return my ID by Sunday.” The prosecution attributes three counts of threats to him. Leah’s family claims they warned the police about these threats months before the murder and plan to sue the police for alleged negligence in handling their complaints.