Slain Youth’s Father Denounces ‘False Reports’

Autopsy findings in the case of slain Ethiopian-Israeli teenager Solomon Tekah elicited further expressions of mistrust of the official probe on Thursday.

Worka Tekah, his father, rejected what he called “false reports slandering Solomon’s name” that said his son had been under the influence of drugs at the time he was shot and killed by a police officer who said he was trying to break up a street fight and was set upon by three youths who hurled stones at him, endangering his life.

The autopsy results released on Thursday showed that Tekah had drunk alcohol prior to the incident, and that the bullet ricocheted off the ground before killing him, corroborating the officer’s account, Channel 12 news reported.

At a press conference at Bar-Ilan University, Worka Tekah said: “We had hope that law enforcement would investigate and arrive at the truth but instead we have come to slander and harm to his reputation,” he said through a translator. “How can one desecrate the name of a man buried in the earth and is incapable of defending himself and clearing his name? They are killing my son for a second time,” Tekah said.

He called again for an independent probe to be conducted “without any bias” and said the family lacked faith in the law enforcement agencies.