A West Bank Palestinian posed as a resident of the Israeli-Arab city of Nazareth in order to pass an Israeli weapons course and gain employment as an armed security guard at a mall in the center of Israel, the police reported on Friday.
Palestinian Mahmud al-Raja successfully passed a weapons course, qualified to work as an armed security guard, and was employed for a short while as a security guard at a mall in Holon all before he was caught and arrested by the police.
Al-Raja’s arrest came after Israel Police received a complaint on Thursday from the resident of Nazareth whose identity he was using, in which he informed them that an imposter was issued a weapons license under his name.
Holon police investigators then found and arrested the suspect, a 36-year-old resident of the Palestinian Authority town of Dura near Hebron in the West Bank.
The suspect will be detained for the investigation
The suspect was arrested and brought to the police station for investigation, and later was brought before a judge and detained until Monday for further questioning.
An Israel Police officer is seen during an emegerncy drill in the town of Meron ahead of the annual Lag BaOmer pilgrimage to Mount Meron on Sunday, May 7, 2023 (credit: ISRAEL POLICE)Judge Alaa Masarwa stressed in his decision to extend the suspect’s detention: “This case evokes difficult feelings between great embarrassment and a real concern arising from the way the authorities handled the case of the suspect, who scammed his way to a weapons license, and even employment as a security guard at the Holon mall, while being a citizen of the Palestinian Authority.”
“He pretended to be an Israeli, has a criminal record, and has also accumulated convictions for property crimes, violent crimes, and fraud,” Judge Masarwa added.
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