Olmert questioned for 8 hours over obstruction of justice

Former prime minister Ehud Olmert was questioned for eight hours on Monday at the National Fraud Unit headquarters in Lod, where investigators grilled him on suspicions of obstruction of justice.

Olmert, convicted last week for bribery in the Holyland affair, is under investigation following claims by his former aide, Shula Zaken, that he tried to dissuade her from turning state’s witness.

Olmert, who was questioned under caution, reportedly denied any wrongdoing and told investigators that it was Zaken who tried to draw him into incriminating actions. He reportedly claimed that Zaken, in leveling allegations of obstruction of justice against him, was “trying to take revenge on me.”

Investigators reportedly did not play Olmert recordings of phone conversations he had with Zaken, which she had taped and which she alleged showed him dissuading her from accepting a plea bargain earlier in the Holyland proceedings. Those recordings may be used in Tuesday’s questioning.

Amir Dan, the former prime minister’s spokesman, questioned the timing and substance of the police investigation.

“We expected the [state attorney]… to show some humanity,” he said according to Channel 10. “The police insistence on investigating Olmert precisely at this time, just days after his conviction at a time when he should start preparing for the sentencing hearing, was intended to break him at any cost and improperly influence the sentencing.”

Olmert was convicted on a number of charges of bribe-taking last week in connection to the Holyland residential project in Jerusalem. Olmert, who served as mayor of the capital over a decade ago, was one of several officials convicted for helping push the mega-development through.

Dan accused the prosecution of going after Olmert in an attempt to save face, after the court rejected its plea deal with Zaken prior to the verdict last week.

Zaken had attempted to parlay evidence in her possession, including tapes she claimed would prove the obstruction allegation, in exchange for a plea bargain that would reduce her sentence for her part in the Holyland case. Zaken was convicted in the case alongside Olmert and several other defendants.

Tel Aviv District Court Judge David Rozen, who convicted the group, decided not to wait for the obstruction evidence and delivered the verdict last Monday.

State prosecutors met with Zaken on Thursday in the offices of the National Fraud Unit to probe her claims.

Zaken reportedly also told the state prosecution that she could testify against the ex-premier in the earlier Rishon Tours and Talansky cases, for which he was acquitted in 2012 and which the state is appealing.

Two of Olmert’s lawyers are facing questions over their conduct as a result of new testimony by Zaken, according to a Channel 10 report Friday.

Zaken claims that the two attorneys, while covertly protecting the interests of her former boss, advised her against taking a plea bargain early in the Holyland case. They will reportedly be called in for questioning within days.

On Sunday, Navot Tal-Tzur, another of Olmert’s lawyers, was questioned by the unit.

Alfred Akirov, head of the Alrov Group, is also expected to be questioned under caution in relation to Zaken’s new testimony.

Zaken reportedly told police on Thursday that in 2013, Akirov, responsible for the city’s Mamilla residential and commercial development, employed her for several months — with a monthly salary of NIS 25,000 (some $7,000) — at Olmert’s request. The implication was that Olmert was attempting to keep her quiet with Akirov’s help.

Akirov responded Friday that there was nothing untoward in his employment of Zaken as a tourism consultant for several of his hotels in Jerusalem.