An Arab-Israeli resident of Lod, who worked on the renovation of a Jewish family's home in nearby Ramla, was arrested today on suspicion of setting fire to the laundromat owned by the family. According to the investigation material, the arson occurred after the suspect asked the owner of the laundromat to increase payment for a renovation project done in his house, and was declined.

Around 3 o'clock in the morning, the well-known laundromat on Yoseftal Street in the city of Ramla was set on fire. After not being given extra pay for his work not agreed to in the original deal, the construction worker decided to take matters into his own hand and on Saturday night arrived with a flammable substance and set fire to his client’s business. Severe damage was caused to the place and the fire consumed expensive equipment, machines, and many products. Ramla police officers knocked on the door of the family's house in the dead of night and informed them about the fire in their store.

אני יודע שהעיסוק היום סביב ההפגנה, אבל גם זה קרה ביממה האחרונה.
תושב רמלה שלא עשה רע לאף אחד מנהל מכבסה לפרנסתו. יום אחד פועל שעבד אצלו בבית מאיים שאם הוא לא יעלה לו את התשלום - יזיקו לעסק שלו. הוא לא העלה לו - והנה התוצאה בעסק שלו. נשרף כליל. @MakorRishon pic.twitter.com/A0qltDJOTA

— שילה פריד (@shilofreid) February 20, 2023

This is the third arson incident in the city of Ramla in the last two weeks. About two weeks ago, six vehicles parked next to each other in a parking lot on Moshe Tzalach Street were set on fire. Last week, two vehicles were set on fire at another point in Ramla. The background to the previous events is unclear and no suspects have been arrested.

"The business of an entire family that makes a living from it has been dismantled here," said Rona, the daughter of the laundromat owner. "He [the construction worker] literally burned the whole place down. My father just doesn't know where to even start to rebuild the business. Our family is stunned."

רמלה: עובד הצית עסק שבעליו סירב להעלות את שכרו @shilofreid pic.twitter.com/c1CX85ye6Y

— מקור ראשון (@MakorRishon) February 20, 2023

Early Tuesday morning, the police said that the suspect was arrested. According to the report, "Investigators of the police station in Ramla opened a case, upon receiving a report of a fire in a business in the city, with no casualties. At the end of the examination of the scenes, arson was suspected. In the meantime, the station's investigators conducted an investigation using technological means and this morning arrested a resident of Lod in his forties for questioning. Apparently, the background is a business dispute. At the end of his investigation, he was imprisoned."

Just recently, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu promised, after a protest by the residents of Lod regarding the lack of governance, that he would work to establish a plan to strengthen Lod. In Ramla, which borders Lod, residents hope that putting the issue of governance on the government’s agenda will also benefit their city.