As he made his way into a Jerusalem court to hear the indictment against him read out by Jerusalem District Court Judge Yaakov Tzaban, Yosef Chaim Ben-David was asked by reporters if he felt any remorse for the kidnapping Abu Khdeir and burning him alive. Ben-David replied, “I am the messiah.”
Above: Yosef Chaim Ben-David
Suspect In Gruesome Murder Of Arab Boy Tells Reporters “I Am The Messiah”
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
The main suspect in the kidnapping and gruesome murder of 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khbeir told startled reporters Sunday that he is the messiah.
Wearing an Izod pullover with his tzitzit (ritual fringes) dangling against his legs and flanked by police, Yosef Chaim Ben-David he made his way to a Jerusalem District courtroom to hear the indictment against him read out by Jerusalem District Court Judge Yaakov Tzaban.
Before he entered the closed courtroom, Ben-David was asked by reporters if he felt any remorse for kidnapping Abu Khdeir and burning him alive.
According to Yeshiva World, the 30-year-old Ben-David replied, “I am the messiah.”
People close to Ben-David – who ran a successful eyeglasses shop in the haredi Geula neighborhood of Jerusalem until his arrest – say Ben-David will plead temporary insanity.
Abu Khbeir’s family, many other Arabs and a significant number of Jews worry that Ben-David, who has a history of mental illness, will not be punished for the crimes he committed.
Also having their indictments read out Sunday were Ben-David’s two helpers in crime, both 16-year-old minors, one of them a haredi yeshiva student.
The three have already confessed to kidnapping Abu Khdeir from East Jerusalem in the early morning of July 2 and burning him alive him shortly afterward in the Jerusalem Forest west of the city.
Abu Khdeir was chosen by Ben-David and his helpers because he looked far younger than 16 and appeared vulnerable.