The Tel Aviv District Court sentenced Amit Almog to 25 years in prison on Sunday for the murder of his girlfriend, Maya Vishniak, bringing to a close a case that has gripped Israel since the 22-year-old’s killing in 2020 and a legal battle that lasted more than six years.
The three-judge panel, headed by President Judge Gilad Neuthall, also imposed suspended prison sentences and ordered Almog to pay NIS 258,000 in compensation to Vishniak’s family, to be divided equally among her parents and three siblings.
The sentence largely adopted the prosecution’s position under a plea agreement reached late last year, in which prosecutors sought 26 years’ imprisonment while the defense remained free to argue for a lighter sentence.
As part of the agreement, Almog admitted to murder with intent and withdrew his longstanding claims that he had killed Vishniak while legally insane or under diminished criminal responsibility. The agreement nevertheless gave limited weight to his mental condition and his cannabis use at the time of the killing, without reducing his criminal responsibility for intentionally causing her death.
According to the amended indictment, Vishniak arrived at Almog’s family home in Ramat Gan on May 16, 2020, after the two had arranged to meet the previous day. After Almog’s sister left the apartment, the court found that he decided to kill her. He asked Vishniak to lie on her side before strangling her and covering her mouth as she struggled, then continued pressing on her neck until she died of asphyxiation.
The judges also noted that immediately afterward, Almog filmed Vishniak’s body and himself singing while scattering banknotes over her body before sending the footage to a friend via WhatsApp.
‘The murder gravely violated the sanctity of life,’ the court said
In determining the sentence, the court said the murder gravely violated the sanctity of life and emphasized that Almog had abused the trust inherent in the couple’s romantic relationship. It also pointed to the devastating and continuing impact on Vishniak’s family, whose victim impact statements were heard behind closed doors and remain under a publication ban.
The judges set the appropriate sentencing range at 25 years to life imprisonment before imposing the minimum sentence within that range, citing the plea agreement alongside mitigating factors including Almog’s eventual admission of guilt, lack of prior criminal convictions, age, mental condition and the fact that he has been in custody since his arrest in May 2020.
Following the ruling, relatives shouted toward Almog, “May you die in prison,” according to reports.
Maya’s father, Ariel Vishniak, said the court had imposed the harshest sentence it legally could.
“The court gave the maximum it could give,” he said. “We will carry this for the rest of our lives. This is not something that disappears; it will never disappear.”
Her brother, Ron, said that the court, in its sentencing, “expressed its revulsion toward the act as an important message against the murder of women and against violence in general. It won’t bring our Maya back, but at least we know her murderer will remain in prison for many years.”
Her sister, Shira, said the family was now entering “a difficult chapter of our lives.”
“Maya was supposed to be 28. Her whole life was ahead of her,” she said. “We finished one chapter of six years, and now we begin the hard chapter of our lives – living without Maya, mourning her, missing her, and continuing to live alongside her absence.”
Prosecutor Oren Paz said the sentence largely reflected the prosecution’s position and expressed hope that it would offer the family “some measure of relief and comfort” after years of proceedings.
“The family accompanied the legal process throughout, enduring difficult hearings and listening to Almog’s attempts to persuade the court that he committed the murder while insane and should therefore be acquitted,” Paz said. “Now, after admitting that he intentionally murdered Maya, he will never again be able to claim otherwise.”
Paz added that the family’s quiet presence throughout the proceedings had ensured that “Maya’s voice was heard powerfully” and reiterated that the prosecution would continue pursuing cases of intimate partner violence “out of commitment to the fight against violence against women and to securing justice for victims and their families.”
