How He Tried to Erase the Evidence: Suspect in Bnei Brak Yeshiva Student Murder Fled and Hid the Evidence in an Abandoned Building

About a month after the murder that shocked Bnei Brak, the Dan District’s Major Crimes Unit announced on Thursday that it had completed its investigation into Guy Achtlinger, the suspect in the murder of yeshiva student Yishai Por. At the end of the investigation, a prosecutor’s statement was filed against him, and the court extended his detention by another five days, until June 14. Prosecutors are expected to file an indictment against him in the coming days.

The murder took place on May 20, in the early afternoon, when police dispatch received a report of a man who had been stabbed in a yeshiva and kollel compound on HaAr”i Street in Bnei Brak. Por, 52, a resident of the city, was evacuated in serious condition to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly afterward.

As part of the manhunt launched immediately after the murder, officers from the Bnei Brak-Ramat Gan station, in cooperation with officers from the Beit Shemesh station, located Achtlinger in Beit Shemesh after he fled there. The suspect, 45 and homeless, was arrested for questioning, jailed, and his detention was extended from time to time.

The investigation found that Achtlinger arrived at the compound, met Por, and suddenly attacked him without warning, in front of his 13-year-old son. According to suspicion, he stabbed him several times and caused the fatal wounds, then fled the scene. The child, who was sitting next to his father during the incident, saw him collapse to the ground and bleed on the floor of the study hall.

The investigation also found that the suspect and the deceased used to pray in the same compound, and that in the past they had argued over interpretations of religious matters. Testimony collected during the investigation indicated that the suspect had previously threatened Por that he would kill him, but police say no complaint was ever filed on the matter.

One of the main findings in the investigation concerns the suspect’s escape route. Through investigative actions and the review of security cameras, investigators were able to trace his movements after he left the murder scene. According to the findings, Achtlinger fled on foot through the streets of Bnei Brak while hiding a bloodstained glove and the knife suspected of being used in the murder inside his jacket. Later, according to the suspicion, he threw both items into an abandoned building in the city in an attempt to conceal evidence.

Police say the series of investigative steps, along with testimony taken and evidence collected from the scene and the escape route, established the evidentiary basis against the suspect and led to the filing of the prosecutor’s statement. Now, after the investigation has been completed, the State Prosecutor’s Office is expected to file an indictment against him for murder.