'New forensic findings' in Tair Rada murder case
Forensic Institute urgently summons attorney of Roman Zadorov, convicted and jailed for the 2006 murder of the 13-year-old Rada, and representatives from the prosecution after hair found on Tair's body that could belong to former boyfriend of A.K., a woman who allegedly confessed to committing the murder.
Apparently, a hair was found on Rada's stomache that matched the mitochondrial DNA of A.H., the former boyfriend of A.K., who allegedly confessed to committing the murder herself to at least three people.
The hair can be used to support his testominy that A.K. was wearing his clothes when she committed the murder. However, this evidence is not conclusive, as A.H. is one of a group of people—the number of which is unknown—who could be the owner of the hair.
Meanwhile, Zadorov's lawyer Yarom Halevi plans to file for a request for a retrial in the coming months due to new evidence that allegedly ties A.K. to the murder.
This evidence includes testimonies from three people to whom she allegedly confessed the murder to; documents that imply her possible involvement in the case; and excerpts from A.K.'s own testimony to the police.
The documents include a report from a psychiatrist who treated A.K. in 2014, to whom she had said "she has a hunger to kill someone, like an urge, and that she could barely control it." To that end, A.K. told the psychiatrist she purchased a knife and gloves.
Another document includes excerpts from the affidavit A.K. signed in which she was asked, among other things, "did you say... that there's a possibility you were involved in the murder of Tair Rada, but you don't remember it?" In her response, A.K. confirmed it, but with reservations. "I remember this vaguely. I remember that due to pressure put on me... I told her things about my alleged involvement in the murder of Tair (which of course is disconnected from reality), but I don't remember what was the exact content of what was said."
The Northern District Police's Central Unit said that “A.K. was thoroughly investigated and her confession of the murder was ruled out, since she could have told various people she is the killer because she was mentally ill.”
"In light of the new findings, there must be a retrial and (Zadorov) must be freed from prison," Zadorov's lawyer Halevi said in a press conference after his meeting at the Forensic Institute.
Explaining why it took so many years to examine the hair and reach the conclusion it did not match his client's DNA, Halevi said "the hair was found along with dozens of other hairs on Tair's body. I, as a defense attorney with no resources—meaning, money from the family—had to prioritize which hairs it was most urgent to check. I decided three specific hairs were the most intriguing and sent them to the Forensic Institute for checking."
In light of the new findings, the police will likely now seek to collect additional testimony from A.K., who is currently abroad.
Testimonies against A.K.
A.K.'s story was explored in a Channel 8 docuseries, which aired an interview with A.H. who, six years after the murder, reported to police that his ex-girlfriend was the one who murdered Rada inside a bathroom stall at the Nofey Golan high school in Katzrin.
"When she entered the school, she wrapped fabric around her chest in an effort to flatten it. She wore a pair of my beige cargo pants and a black sweater. She was wearing a wig that we got for Purim a few years earlier and a cap, and carried a large JanSport bag where she had plain silicon cleaning gloves, a hunting knife she bought in advance and a change of clothes," A.H. said in his interview to the docuseries.
He said his girlfriend went into the bathroom at the school and waited for almost two hours for the right moment to strike. When she heard someone come into the bathroom alone, she allegedly came out of the bathroom stall with the knife drawn, grabbed Rada by the shirt and forced her into the bathroom stall, where she allegedly murdered her.
"She said that when she started undressing Tair, girls came into the bathroom. One of them knocked on that stall door and (A.K.) told her it was occupied, while blocking the crack under the door so blood won't come out," A.H. recounted.
After hearing no one was in the bathroom, she fled the scene.
A.H. said that when A.K. returned home, "she took a shower. When she was done she called me while I was at work and told me she couldn't forget the smell of the blood."
He said A.K. showed him the bag she packed for the murder. "She showed me the clothes she wore, the wig, the knife that was there—it was all bloodied. The first thought that went through my head was call the police. To this very day I don't know why I didn't do it that day," he said.
A.H.'s testimony was examined at the time by the Supreme Court, who decided not to accept his claims, while the police found his version of events to be baseless and believed to be motivated by his desire to frame his former girlfriend.
On the other hand, the creators of the docuseries claim A.H. had undergone three different polygraph tests—and found to be speaking the truth in all of them.
In 2012, about six years after the murder, A.K. was hospitalized at a psychiatric institute. After three years, her roommate, Anat, committed suicide.
Anat's friend, May Peleg, recounted a story she heard from Anat. "One day Anat came to me and shared with me a story that (her roommate) told her. She told her she had a frog in her belly that was really thirsty for human blood and that she was willing to murder to quench that thirst. (The roommate) told her of an instance in which she tried to murder a friend but was caught, and said there was a case before that when she wasn't caught."
Peleg was asked about the instance in which the woman was not caught. "On the day Tair Radar was murdered, (the roommate) came to the school wearing a school uniform and carrying a school bag so no one would suspect her. Inside the bag she had the knife she used for the murder and a change of clothes. She just went into the girls' bathroom and waited for someone to come in—no one in particular. Tair went into the bathroom and (the roommate) stood behind her. She slit her throat while putting a hand on her mouth, and then she went into another stall and changed clothes. She just left the school without anyone being able to tell what had happened," Peleg said.
"Anat was pretty shocked by it and we were torn about what to do. Anat consulted with me on what to do, who to turn to. Unfortunately while we were still debating it, Anat left us. To me, Anat's will is an unwritten one she left me—to bring this story to an end," Peleg continued.
