Superintendant Jackie Lugasi, 48, was killed February 20, 2009 in a horrific car accident when he came to help his son change a flat tire on the side of a highway. While attending to the car on the shoulder of Highway 5 at the Morsha Junction, Moshe Cohen, 45, a truck driver strayed from his lane and slammed into Superintendant Lugasi’s car, trapping the officer between the two vehicles. Moshe Cohen was charged with manslaughter, negligence, and drunk driving. Officer Lugasi served in the Israel Police for 23 years as a canine instructor, first in the Israel Police Training School and then in the Northern District’s Canine Unit. For the past ten years he was the chief canine officer in the Operations Department of the Israel Police. He was considered the top Israeli specialist in his field and was globally renowned in the field of dog breeding and training for security purposes. Superintendant Lugasi left behind a wife and four children.
Cohen’s friends stated they shared two bottles of vodka with him shortly before the accident and tried to persuade him not to drive.
