Minister of the Interior Aryeh Deri is apparently the senior politician at the center of Israel's latest corruption affair it was released for publication last night. At this stage, Attorney General Dr. Avichai Mandelblit has approved the opening of a probe but not a criminal investigation.
Yesterday, Channel 2 News correspondent Amit Segal reported that a probe had been opened against a senior political figure. This unleashed a wave of rumors trying to identify the politician in question and the web was flooded with speculation that it concerned Deri. In the wake of this, permission was given to name him as the subject of the probe. Deri has been convicted of bribery in the past when he was Minister of the Interior for which he served a prison sentence.
Deri tweeted last night, "I have contacted the Attorney General and asked him to remove the gag order and publish everything concerning me. I notified him that I am at the disposal of the investigating agencies and will answer any question asked."
In 1999, Deri was found guilty in the Jerusalem District Court of bribery, fraud and breach of trust and sentenced to four years in prison. On appeal his sentence was cut to three years. He was released after nearly two years behind bars.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 30, 2016
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