After an eight-year manhunt, police believe they have found the man responsible for murdering 22-year-old Bedouin soldier Bahjat Yahya. The suspect, Hemadi abu-Mousa, is already in jail for the brutal slaying of a 15-year-old girl in 2006.
Yahya was killed in 2001 as he returned to his unit. Police initially believed that he was murdered by fellow Bedouins who objected to his military service. However, they later developed a second theory, according to which Yahya may have been killed for an “honor crime” -- pursuing a romantic relationship deemed improper by his community.
Police say they believe Mousa, 27, worked together with others to kill Yahya. No other suspects have been arrested in the case to date.
Mousa was arrested earlier this week in jail, where he is serving a life sentence. He denies the allegations.
Mousa and Mohammed el-Huzeil, 30, both of Rahat, are in jail for the brutal slaying of 15-year-old Mika Tagapo in 2006. The two were convicted of murdering Tagapo after she decided to stop seeing young Bedouin men who she had befriended.
The two offered their victim a ride from Ashdod to her home in Kiryat Gat, but took her to Rahat instead. There, they bludgeoned her to death and burnt her body. The teen's body was discovered by young children the next day.