""They put a gun to my head, I screamed in horror but no one heard""

December 6, 2022   

Businesswoman Racheli Yifrach was robbed at gunpoint yesterday (Monday) at 7:00 PM, after she parked her Mercedes in the parking lot of her home in Petah Tikva. Two masked robbers ambushed the wife of a real estate businesswoman in the building's parking lot, armed with guns and a motorcycle. The two robbed her of a luxurious Richard Mille watch, estimated to be worth half a million shekels, and valuable jewelry. The robbers sprayed her with tear gas and threatened her with drawn guns, after she fought them for several minutes and prevented them from stealing more jewelry. "I was walking toward the building's elevator, and suddenly two people with helmets ran toward me," Yifrach told Shimon Ifergan on the mako website. "I tried to run toward the other elevator, but they chased me with drawn guns and blocked my way." According to her, the robbers knew exactly who she was and planned everything in detail: "They knew who I was and were waiting for me in the parking lot to rob me of my expensive watch. One of them shouted: 'Rachel, take the watch off your hand,' but I firmly refused and fought them for seven minutes. "They put a gun to my head and threatened to shoot me, but I continued to resist. I screamed in terror but no one heard me. They told me to shut my mouth and tried to force it shut. After a few minutes of struggle, one of them took out a can of pepper spray and sprayed me in the face. He overpowered me and snatched my watch from my hand. "Later, they also tried to rip a ring off my hand but they couldn't, I really fought them. They saw that I was determined, so in the end they snatched my bag and ran to the motorcycle. I pulled out my phone and managed to take a picture of only part of the motorcycle's license plate number. At that moment, one of the robbers ran towards me, snatched my phone, broke it into pieces on the floor and together with the other robber they fled the scene. "They could have murdered me, but they were probably afraid of being caught and did everything they could to rob me of my expensive watch without seriously harming me. I apologized for the watch, but it's clear that I went through a very difficult experience mentally. I have two children at home." Ifrach added and said: "A relative of mine who I managed to call and tell him what happened called the police and it took them an hour to get to the scene of the incident. In those minutes the robbers could have returned and killed me. The police's conduct in this case was outrageous. I fought off two armed robbers and it took the Israel Police an hour to arrive. It's scary to walk around the streets. I walk around with a feeling of insecurity that my life as a citizen is a nobody. I went through an unpleasant experience, I hope the police will act and locate the suspects soon." The Israel Police responded to the Mako website: "Following a report at the police hotline about the incident, a mobile vehicle was dispatched to the scene. In accordance with the time constraints and prioritization of unusual events, police officers arrived at the scene as quickly as possible. Upon arrival, they met with informants and conducted searches for suspects in the act who fled the scene. "The police opened an investigation, collected testimonies and collected findings and evidence on the ground in order to locate and bring those involved to justice.".