Trial to take place behind closed doors to protect four accusers.
By AMY SPIROMoshe Ivgy(photo credit: GADI DAGON/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)
Acclaimed Israeli actor Moshe Ivgy was indicted on Thursday on charges of sexual assault and harassment against four women.The Haifa district prosecutor issued charges against Ivgy for his alleged behavior against the women in the years 2012 and 2013.According to the indictment, Ivgy assaulted and harassed three women he was working with. One woman, named as A, said he stuck his hand up the back of her shirt and stroked her back, and another time hugged her tightly and refused to let her go.Another, named only as B, said Ivgy once reached into her shirt and cupped her breast and she slapped him.A third woman, who also worked with the actor, said once on set he pulled her towards him and pushed his face into her chest.A fourth woman, who did not know or work with Ivgy, accused the actor of verbally harassing her about sexual acts at a falafel shop.The accusations against Ivgy were first revealed in early 2016, when multiple women made claims against the actor, and police opened a criminal investigation. In August, police recommended an indictment against the actor and a pre-trial hearing was held.In November, Channel 2 news claimed that Ivgy had cut a deal with the prosecutor to close the case without an indictment, but at the time the District Attorney's Office said no such deal existed.The trial will take place behind closed doors at the Haifa Magistrate's Court in order to protect the identities of the four women.