According to indictment, Ariel policeman harassed woman found to possess drugs for personal use, failed to notify her case was closed.
By YAAKOV LAPPINThinkstock Israeli police 370(photo credit: Thinkstock)
A senior policeman from the Judea and Samaria district sexually harassed a woman over a period of months via phone calls, the Justice Ministry’s Police Investigations Department said Monday.According to an indictment filed on Monday, Dep.-Cmdr. Marc Amiel, of the Investigations Department of the Ariel Police Station, made dozens of calls to a woman found to possess drugs for personal use, and failed to notify her that her case was closed.The woman’s home was searched by police in August 2010 and found to contain a small quantity of drugs. She was detained for questioning and admitted to using drugs for medical purposes.Police released the woman after questioning, and within a few weeks, Amiel closed the case against her. However, he allegedly did not notify her of the closure as required by protocol, the charge sheet said.What allegedly came next was a series of sexual offers made over the phone.“The accused allegedly called the woman, presented himself as an officer, and said her case was before him pending a decision. He asked her to arrive at the station with documents on her medical and physical condition,” the charge sheet said.The woman complied, and began telling her difficult life story to the officer, while breaking down in tears. He allegedly promised to close her case.In the following four months, Amiel allegedly called the woman dozens of times from his office and personal cellphone, and told her she was depressed because of lack of sex, while offering to “ease her suffering.”The woman rejected the offers, saying she was interested in a friendship instead, but that allegedly did not stop barrage of alleged sexual offers.“The accused misused his authority as a policeman, and breached public trust,” the indictment said.
