Graft trial begins for ex-defense minister Ben-Eliezer

Former Labor Party leader facing slew of corruption charges allowed to skip arraignment hearing due to poor health

Tamar Pileggi is a breaking news editor at The Times of Israel.

Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, May 27, 2014. (Flash90)
Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, May 27, 2014. (Flash90)

The retired lawmaker Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, a one-time defense minister, leader of the Labor Party and presidential candidate, was set to be arraigned in absentia on Monday at the Tel Aviv District Court on a slew of graft charges.

Ben-Eliezer, 80, who left the Knesset in 2014 after a 30-year political career with Labor, was indicted in December by state prosecutors for demanding and receiving over two million shekels (over $500,000) from businesspeople in exchange for actions he allegedly took as a public servant.

He is also accused of receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of foreign currencies that he kept hidden and unreported in safes in his home and a bank, apparently in violation of tax laws and transparency rules for Knesset members. The funds were purportedly used to buy real estate, including an apartment in Jaffa.

Judge George Kara on Saturday agreed with Ben-Eliezer’s attorneys, who argued that the former minister, who suffers from kidney disease, should not have to attend the hearing due to his poor health.

The criminal proceedings against Ben-Eliezer began when then-attorney general Yehuda Weinstein in January 2015 accepted a police recommendation to indict the politician and 10 of his associates.

Police said a six-month investigation in 2014 uncovered evidence Ben-Eliezer had accepted funds from businessmen for unspecified financial favors in 2006, when he served as national infrastructure minister. He is also accused of laundering money using the bank accounts of several relatives.

Police also investigated a separate $350,000 payment from a relative, and alleged improprieties relating to other large sums of money.

The businessmen Abraham Nanikashvili and Jacky Ben-Zaken, and Ben-Eliezer’s former bureau chief Ayelet Azoulay, were among the 10 suspects.

Ben-Eliezer’s attorneys last year attempted to reach a settlement in the case without going to trial, citing his poor health, but Weinstein rejected the request.

In December 2014, the politician announced he would leave politics to focus on his health and clearing his name.

The probe prompted the veteran MK to drop a bid for Israel’s presidency in June of that year, three days before the election.

Ben-Eliezer has suffered from various health issues for a number of years, and in December 2014 underwent a kidney transplant. Several months later, he was hospitalized with a serious case of influenza, at which time he was hooked up to life support until his condition improved.

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