Last update - 00:00 09/01/2008
U.S. basketballer Bynum, freed from jail, rejoins Maccabi teammates
By Roni Singer-Heruti and Ofer Matan, Haaretz Correspondents and AP
Police have wrapped up their investigation into Maccabi Tel Aviv's Will Bynum, who is suspected of running over a man after a nightclub brawl, and handed their finding to the State Prosecutor's Office, which will examine the evidence and testimonies to decide whether to charge the player.
Sources close to the investigation say that police have refrained from making any recommendation in the case and did not comment in their report on whether there is evidence for charging Bynum.
The sources add, however, that police believe there is enough evidence to charge Bynum with grievous bodily harm, since all the evidence seems to indicate that the victim, 22-year-old Ben-Natan Bronson from Dimona, was seriously injured when he was struck by the vehicle that Bynum was driving.
Bynum still maintains that he was unaware that he had hit Bronson. Bynum was released from custody on Monday after new evidence came to light that seemed to change the investigation's direction. Haaretz has learned that this evidence is a report by a police accident inspector who examined the scene of the incident and the reconstruction that Bynum participated in on Monday, which would suggest that the player's version of events is feasible.
More good news for Bynum is that the investigation is now taking the path of a regular accident investigation, rather than a criminal incident.
Bynum was at Maccabi's training session for the first time since his arrest and was visibly moved to be back in the fold. His teammates greeted the former NBA guard with applause and hugs, and most of them expressed their support for him. Only Marcus Frazer bucked the trend, saying that while he wished Bynum well, he was surprised and saddened that a professional athlete would be partying until the early hours of the morning, rather than resting at home.
Bynum, who played at Georgia Tech, will now be permitted to play in local games, but he is barred from leaving the country for 30 days without a special request for their overseas games.
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