"Galei Zahal" (IDF Army ) radio quotes former Israel Police Head of Investigations Division Major General Yossi Sadbon as saying that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert could face an indictment within the next few months.
Sadbon says the evidence that investigators have already amassed will provide an adequate basis for charges. "It is difficult to predict exactly how long an investigation will take," he said, "but in this case, as it is being claimed that money changed hands, and there's a witness that can confirm it, three to four months is a fairly accurate estimate."
Olmert denied taking bribes when he was questioned by police for a second time on Friday. Olmert placed the responsibility on his former bureau chief, Shula Zaken, and his business partner, Adv. Uri Messer. During the meeting, which lasted just over an hour, Olmert admitted receiving money for political campaigns from New York financier Morris Talansky, the key witness in the affair, but insisted that Messer had handled the donations. He also reprimanded the police for allegedly leaking details of the inquiry to the media.
Talansky is due to make a deposition in the Jerusalem District Court this Tuesday. Sadbon believes the leaks will stop once Talansky has testified, since all the details of the inquiry will available to the public.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 25, 2008
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