Court worker suspected of leaking files in Ashkelon mayor case
Police question man who may have released classified documents concerning investigation of Itamar Shimoni
A court employee was grilled by police Tuesday on suspicion of leaking information about a probe into corruption charges against Ashkelon Mayor Itamar Shimoni.
Shimoni was arrested in January on suspicion of rape, corruption and bribery. According to the charges, Shimoni and his associates accepted bribes totaling hundreds of thousands of shekels from contractors and building developers in exchange for municipal approvals for various construction projects in the southern coastal city.
According to a Walla news report, the court worker passed information to an unauthorized individual concerning a classified investigation into corruption charges against Shimoni.
The suspect was questioned under warning on suspicion of obstruction of justice, breach of trust and leaking classified documents.
The man was released to five-day house arrest after the interrogation, was barred from entering the court offices for 15 days, and was forbidden from communicating with people involved in the case.
Shimoni allegedly used NIS 500,000 ($127,000) in kickbacks to buy the silence of a former female municipal employee whom he sexually assaulted over a period of time, Channel 2 reported.
At least four women have accused Shimoni of sexual assault, and one has accused him of rape.
Charges against Shimoni include bribery, breach of trust, money laundering and rape.
Shimoni was arrested along with four other city officials, among them his brother Ofer Shimoni, as part of a wider fraud investigation by the Lahav 433 anti-corruption unit.
Police conducted searches of the Ashkelon city hall and all five suspects’ homes and seized documents, computers and other property as evidence.
According to Haaretz, Shimoni has admitted to receiving money from a number of his associates, but maintains the funds were loans, and not bribes.
Shimoni’s attorney Yaron London said his client was innocent and that he had “good explanations” for the allegations leveled against him.
“His actions are not criminal,” London said, adding that Shimoni was cooperating fully with investigators.
During the remand hearing on Tuesday morning, Shimoni declined to talk about the details of the investigation, but told reporters he was “calm” in the face of the potential indictment.
Last year, Shimoni drew harsh responses from Israeli leaders after he announced he would he would lay off Arab construction workers installing bomb shelters in local kindergartens. Days later, he backtracked from his proposal, calling it “disproportionate.”
Tamar Pileggi contributed to this report.
