Search for Missing Yeshiva Student Ends in Tragedy

The parents of a missing American yeshiva student in Jerusalem had offered a $28,000 reward for finding their 23-year-old son.

The body of Aaron (Aharon) Sofer, 23, who was missing for almost a week, was found on Thursday afternoon in a forest thicket on the outskirts of Jerusalem.

It seems that he died from a fall.

Sofer was reported missing last Friday afternoon. An American yeshiva (Talmudic Studies) student from Lakewood, N.J., he was hiking with a friend in a forest just outside Jerusalem. The young men became separated while descending a steep hill.

The friend, whose name has not been released, contacted police when Sofer failed to show up for Friday evening Sabbath services. None of their acquaintances had heard from him since the outing.

Prayer vigils had been taking place daily in the close-knit Lakewood community. A prayer event at the Western Wall in Jerusalem followed by a press conference was planned for Thursday evening but was cancelled when the body was discovered at approximately 4 p.m.

US Rep Chris Smith, who represents New Jersey, said on Tuesday that the US consul general in Israel was working closely with Israeli police “at all levels of Israeli government “ in search of Sofer. He assured the family that “no stone is being left unturned.”

A member of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, Smith had also sent a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry Monday asking for assistance.

Hundreds of volunteers were combing the area in search of the missing student.

Sofer’s parents had announced a $28,000 reward (100,000 Israeli shekels) for finding him.

The funeral took place Friday morning in a Beit Shemesh cemetery, where he was buried next to his grandfather.

Written by: United with Israel Staff