Nicolai Bonner
| Nicolai Bonner | |
|---|---|
| Born |
1972 (age 43–44) Moldova |
| Other names |
Haifa serial killer The Homeless Murderer |
| Criminal penalty | Life |
| Conviction(s) | Murder |
| Killings | |
| Victims | 4 |
Span of killings | February, 2005–May, 2005 |
| Country | Israel |
Date apprehended | May 29, 2005 |
Nicolai Bonner (born 1972) is a Moldovan serial killer who emigrated to Israel as an adult, and who murdered four immigrants from the former Soviet Union, three of them homeless, in an industrial area of Haifa, and as a result became Israel's first serial killer. The victims were all beaten, and their bodies set on fire. Due to their being homeless he was dubbed "the homeless murderer".[1] and has been called "Israel's first serial killer."[2] His victims were Alexander Levant, Alexander Kars, Valeri Soznov, and Rita Wolman. Levant, Kars, and Soznov were Bonner's former drinking partners.
Bonner was born and raised in Moldova to non-Jewish parents, but was eligible to immigrate to Israel under the Law of Return because his wife was Jewish. He immigrated to Israel in 2000, with his wife, who died of tuberculosis in 2003. After his wife's death, Bonner's emotional state deteriorated rapidly, and a month later, he requested a leave of absence from his job at a pipe factory in Jaffa. He committed his first murder in 2005, but police did not begin to suspect a serial killer until the third body, that of Soznov, was discovered. In every case, the bodies were beaten and bruised, and attempts had been made to set them on fire.[3] Two months after his first murder, police began to link Bonner to the murders.
On May 6, 2007 Bonner was sentenced to life imprisonment; 4 consecutive life terms and additional 17 years imprisonment for other crimes: 5 years for attempted murder, 9 years for aggravated rape, and 3 years for other charges including aggravated assault and interfering with judicial proceedings.