Hili Sobol's killers in court
Hili Sobol's killers in courtFlash 90

The Tel Aviv District Court sentenced David Eran to 20 years in jail for killing 18-year-old Hili Sobol at the urging of her twin sister.

The court invoked a clause that restricts the court from handing out life sentences in cases where authorities doubt the killer's sanity. Sobol's sister, Shiri, received six years in jail for soliciting bodily harm.

Eran stabbed Hili Sobel outside the stairwell of her Givatayim home in February 2016 after months of urging by Shiri Sobol. Sobol told Eran that she hated her sister, and couldn't enjoy life whenever Hili returned from boarding school, texting Eran that "I’m fed up with living here with that nutcase,” and “It’s hard for me to live like this when she’s here at home. It’s not her house, she should get out of my life.”

Shiri told Eran that she wished her sister would die, writing that "If only an Arab or a terrorist would stab her." She also told him that Hili threatened to harm her if she refused to break up with Eran.

Shiri and Eran planned out the murder for months and even made two unsuccessful attempts. On the day of the murder, Eran stabbed Hili 130 times while Shiri watched, including 30 times in her neck. Shiri then called the police and reported that Arabs had stabbed Hili before fleeing the scene.

Eran changed his clothes and hid in her mother's bedroom and disabled the door in order to prevent police from entering. After police forced in the door, Shiri told police that "I didn’t do anything, what, do you think me and David planned to murder her?"

In the trial, prosecutors had painted a picture of Eran as a troubled person, who was completely under the spell of the manipulative Shiri. Their romance "was defined by the fact that Shiri exercised a great deal of influence over him and knew that he would do whatever she asked of him, whatever it took to satisfy her and sustain their romantic connection," read the indictment.