Benny Sela

Benny Sela was born in 1971 in Tel Aviv

Benny Sela was born in Tel Aviv in 1971 and grew up in the Hatikva Quarter. As a boy, he saw his alcoholic father take his own life. On a social worker's recommendation, he went to live at kibbutz Sha'ar HaGolan.

In 1993 he was charged with indecent assault on four young women in Netanya. In 1995 he was convicted of sexually assaulting a relative and sentenced to 2 years in prison. Police linked him to a series of rapes in the Tel Aviv area, and he became known as the Tel Aviv rapist.

He was arrested in Tel Aviv in December 1999, and DNA samples matched those of 9 victims. Under a plea bargain, the Tel Aviv District Court sentenced him on December 31, 2000 to 35 years in prison.

On November 24, 2006, he escaped from police custody at the Tel Aviv court and was caught again on December 8, 2006. He received 4 more years in prison for offenses during the escape.

In prison he filed hundreds of petitions, which led to court rulings on fees and prisoner petitions. He received further sentences in 2017 and 2021 for indecent acts. In June 2024 a parole board rejected his request for early release.