"Can't Say His Name": The Prisoner Who Terrorized an Entire City from a Prison Phone Booth

Asaf Boskila, a prisoner at Shata Prison, ran a gambling and extortion empire from a prison phone booth, raking in millions and bringing down hundreds of families in Migdal HaEmek. He operated with an attack dog, a magnet-controlled roulette wheel, and monthly interest rates of 5%-15%. An indictment has been filed against 10 defendants.

Asaf Boskila, 30, from Migdal HaEmek, is accused of running a gambling and extortion empire from the rehabilitation wing of Shata Prison, generating millions in profits and bringing down hundreds of families in the north. Under the name "Yossi," he operated a pirate casino in a hideout apartment, online sports betting, and gray-market loans with monthly interest rates of 5%-15%. Debtors, addicted to gambling, fell into debts of tens and hundreds of thousands of shekels. The gang collected debts violently, including an attack dog, a German Shepherd named "Max," who sank his teeth into debtors. Boskila was sentenced in 2020 to eight years in prison, and since 2022 he ran the operation from the public phone booth in prison, using slang to disguise his activities. He estimated his worth at "9 pieces" (millions) and invested in real estate and crypto. An indictment was filed against 10 defendants, led by "Yossi," in the "Wall and Tower" case investigated by a special team from Lahav 433. Investigators described how gamblers received credit, fell into debt, and took loans to cover them, in an endless cycle. One story etched in memory was of a woman forced to hand over her Audi to the gang in tears.