The Jerusalem District Court on Tuesday filed an indictment including a plea-bargain agreement filed against Yosef Tzvi Barkan, whose negligence led to the death of Avigail and Yael Gross, 4 and 18-months-old respectively, of the Givat Mordechai neighborhood of Jerusalem in 2014. Brothers Chaim Michael and Refael Yitzchak B’chasdei Hashem fought the massive damage caused by the chemical agent to their bodies and there were discharged from the hospital.

Barkan, a professional exterminator, accepted an agreement and will serve a prison term for his actions, which led to the deaths as he used a deadly chemical irresponsibly when treating the Gross home. He will serve three years in prison and pay compensatory damage in the amount of NIS 200,000.

The agreement was accepted after examination of all circumstances, including a psychiatric evaluation submitted by both the defense and the prosecution determining the condition of the accused at the time of the offense. The agreement was also shown to the Gross family in advance and they approved it.

B’chasdei Hashem a boy was born to the Gross family about a year ago in addition to a girl last week. In 2015 the family filed an NIS 11 million lawsuit against the exterminator, the Terem emergency clinic that treated his daughters, the physician and two nurses who treated them, the importer of the chemical agent used by the exterminator and the Ministries of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs, and Health.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)