Roadway Dispute in Tamra Leads to Assault, Bite and Vehicle Damage, Indictment Filed Against 22-Year-Old
A routine dispute over right of way on an inner-city road in Tamra escalated within minutes into a severe violent attack. The defendant punched a minibus driver, bit his hand, and smashed the vehicle’s windows with a large stone. The Galilee North Prosecution Branch of the Israel Police filed a serious indictment with the Acre Magistrate’s Court against Abdullah Hajazi, 22, a resident of Tamra, for assault causing actual bodily harm and malicious damage to a vehicle. The indictment stems from a brutal road incident that began over a disagreement about passing on a narrow street.
According to the indictment filed this week with the Acre Magistrate’s Court, the incident took place about a month ago in the afternoon. The complainant, a driver for a transportation company, was driving a minibus on a narrow, sloping road leading to one of the neighborhoods in Tamra. Approaching from the opposite direction was the defendant, driving a private car. Since the road was too narrow for both vehicles to pass at the same time, the transportation driver signaled with his hands for the defendant to proceed, until the defendant stopped his car alongside the minibus.
At that point, according to the indictment, Hajazi opened his car window and began shouting at the driver, "Why are you yelling at me?" while hurling insults at him. The transportation driver replied with insults of his own, and the defendant’s response was immediate. He got out of his car, approached the transport vehicle, opened the driver’s door and began attacking the complainant with punches directed at his left eye. The assaulted driver tried to defend himself and grabbed the defendant by the neck, and in response the defendant bit his left hand hard. Hajazi, 22, is accused of assaulting the victim with punches and biting him. / Israel Police spokesperson
The violence did not stop there. After the physical assault, the defendant picked up a paving stone that was nearby and hurled it forcefully at the rear of the minibus. As a result, both rear windows of the transport vehicle were shattered, and heavy property damage was caused to the vehicle, estimated at about 2,000 shekels. The defendant then fled the scene.
As a result of the severe violence, the transportation driver suffered injuries and bleeding to his face and bite marks on his left hand. He was evacuated for medical treatment at Rambam Hospital in Haifa. Police in the Northern District, who launched a rapid investigation upon receiving the report, located the suspect and arrested him. According to the police, by the end of the investigation a solid evidentiary foundation had been established, which led to the indictment being filed by the police’s Galilee North Prosecution Branch.
