Israelis arrested for fraud after pretending to be victims of Oct 7

Several individuals were summoned for police questioning after they claimed to be victims of the October 7 massacre in order to receive government aid funds, the Police Spokesperson's Unit said on Monday. 

In the investigation unit of the National Insurance Institute, information was compiled that showed there were individuals who committed fraud to receive the funds.

The suspects were suspected for submitting false claims about their presence at the scene of the Supernova music festival in an attempt to receive aid funds amounting to thousands of shekels. 

בחקירה משותפת של שוטרי היחידה הארצית למאבק בפשיעה כלכלית בלהב 433 והביטוח הלאומי עוכבו לחקירה חשודים שהגישו תביעות כזב לביטוח הלאומי, על מנת שיוכרו כנפגעי איבה בעקבות אירועי ה-7.10 במסיבת הנובה, על אף שלא נכחו כלל במסיבה והציגו מידע שקרי

— משטרת ישראל (@IL_police) January 1, 2024

Following the investigation, suspects were released under restricted conditions, while the investigation currently remains ongoing. 

Previous cases of fraud during the war

This is not the first citizen attempt to take advantage of organizations seeking to provide funding to victims of the October 7 attacks. 

One of the biggest cases of fraud during Israel's war against Hamas occurred when it was revealed that Argentinian-Israeli Nico Astroga was responsible for scamming hundreds of thousands of shekels after claiming he was a survivor of the Supernova music festival during the October 7 massacre.