Shocking Twist in Case of Bankstown Nurses Who Threatened to Kill Israeli Patients – Charge Dropped in Dramatic Court Development
- Prosecutors sensationally drop charge against former nurse Sarah Abu Lebdeh, 26, over video chat threats to Israeli patients.
- Abu Lebdeh and co-accused Ahmad Rashad Nadir, 27, still face multiple charges over the disturbing online interaction.
- The pair, who worked at Bankstown Hospital, allegedly bragged about refusing to treat Israeli patients and killing them in the February video chat.
Sarah Abu Lebdeh, the former Bankstown nurse at the centre of a shocking video chat scandal, has had one charge dropped in a dramatic development in the case. Prosecutors announced on Tuesday that they would be withdrawing one count of using a carriage service to threaten to kill, leaving Abu Lebdeh to face two remaining Commonwealth offences.
Abu Lebdeh and her co-accused, Ahmad Rashad Nadir, 27, were charged earlier this year over the disturbing video chat, in which they allegedly threatened to kill Israeli patients and bragged about refusing to treat them. The video, recorded on cam chat app Chatruletka, was uploaded by Israeli content creator Max Veifer and sparked widespread outrage.
Abu Lebdeh still faces charges of threatening violence to a group and using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend. Nadir, who worked alongside Abu Lebdeh at Bankstown Hospital, is charged with using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend and possessing a prohibited drug. His lawyer, Zemarai Khatiz, entered a plea of not guilty to the drug charge, which relates to the alleged possession of morphine.
The cases against the pair will return to court in November, with both remaining on bail. The nurses were stood down from their positions at Bankstown Hospital pending an investigation, which found no evidence that any patients were harmed.
In a statement, police confirmed that the investigation was ongoing and that they would continue to work to ensure that those responsible for the disturbing video chat were held to account.