Bio

Ami Popper was born in 1969 in Israel. He grew up in a Jewish family. Popper joined the Israeli Defense Forces. However, he was later dishonorably discharged from the military. He faced trauma as a youth. He claimed to have been raped by an Arab when he was 13 years old. At the age of 21, on May 20, 1990. He was described as feeling distraught after a breakup with his girlfriend. This emotional state played a role in the actions he took on that day.

Following the events of his actions, Popper was arrested shortly after the incident. He later talked about feelings of shame and a desire for revenge as part of his motivations. In March 1991, he was sentenced to seven life terms in prison for the murders he committed.

In prison, he changed his life. Popper became more religious and eventually married a Canadian woman who came from a family of activists. Together, they had three children. Over time, his sentence was commuted from seven life terms to 40 years in 1999. He was expected to be released on parole after serving more than three decades in prison.

Murder Story

On May 20, 1990, Ami Popper, a 21-year-old man, committed a series of shootings in Rishon Lezion, Israel. He wore an army uniform and approached a group of Palestinians waiting at a bus stop, asking them for their identity cards. After establishing their identities as Arabs, he lined them up and opened fire with an M-16 assault rifle. During this brutal attack, he killed seven men and wounded ten others.

After the shootings, Popper fled the scene in a car belonging to one of the victims. However, he contacted the police shortly after and was arrested within the hour. His actions sparked widespread riots among the Arab community, leading to further violence in which seven more Palestinians died and hundreds were injured.

Popper later stated that he was motivated by feelings of distress and revenge. Initially, he claimed he acted out of heartbreak because his girlfriend had left him. However, he later revealed that he had been raped by an Arab when he was 13 years old. This trauma, he explained, played a significant role in his decision to carry out the shootings.

In 1991, Popper was convicted of seven counts of murder and sentenced to seven life terms in prison. In 1999, his sentence was commuted to 40 years. While in prison, he married and had three children.

On January 17, 2007, while on a temporary furlough, Popper was involved in a car accident that claimed the lives of his wife and one of his young sons. This accident occurred when he crossed into oncoming traffic. At that time, his driving license had been expired for several years, complicating his situation further.

As of now, Ami Popper is expected to be released on parole after serving a significant portion of his revised sentence.