Israeli suspected in 1998 Haifa murder extradited from Berlin by police

Police track down suspect living under a false identity after fleeing the country.

By BEN HARTMAN
Updated: JANUARY 21, 2016 01:51
1998 murder victim Edward Rothberg (photo credit: Courtesy)
1998 murder victim Edward Rothberg
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Eighteen years after he fled Israel to escape a murder charge, a former Haifa resident was in court on Wednesday, the day after he was extradited from Germany.
Gennady Galkin, 43, stayed silent at Haifa Magistrate’s Court as he was bombarded with questions about the night 18 years ago when he allegedly stabbed 25-year-old Technion student Edward Rothberg to death during a fight at a Haifa nightclub.
The only words he had to say during the hearing were “I made a mistake.”
According to Ch.-Insp. David Solomon, the head of the homicide unit of the Coastal District, around two years ago police received information that Galkin was living in Germany under the assumed name “Mark.” Solomon said they launched an undercover organization with German police and managed to locate Galkin in the Berlin area three months ago.
The police said on Wednesday that the extradition process took months of cooperation between Israeli prosecutors and their counterparts in Germany. Last week officers flew to Berlin to escort Galkin back to Israel on Tuesday night. He was taken for further questioning ahead of his remand extension.
On Wednesday, the Haifa Magistrate’s Court extended his remand by six days.
His attorney, Boris Sherman, told reporters on Wednesday that his client has cooperated with investigators and admits only that he was at the Jericho nightclub on the night of the murder.