Kahlon’s brother was under probe for corruption

Deputy mayor of Jerusalem, Kobi Kahlon, the brother of Kulanu head Moshe Kahlon, was under investigation for fraud and breach of trust as part of a probe that was launched in 2012, Hebrew media reported Thursday.

According to reports, he was suspected of facilitating building processes for the developers of a restaurant in Jerusalem as head of the city’s local planning and building committee. The head of the investigative unit, under the police’s Lahav 443 economic division, said that there was no conclusive evidence to determine wrongdoing, Ynet reported, but the case remains with the prosecutor’s office pending official closure.

Kobi Kahlon reportedly knew of the investigation against him, having been tipped off by the lead investigator. The police’s internal division confirmed to Ynet that a probe was launched into the matter.

Kahlon told the Kikar Hashabbat website that the whole affair was an attempt to blackmail him for some NIS 50,000 in exchange for closing the case.

Kahlon took a three-month leave of absence from his municipality duties to help found and set up his brother’s Kulanu party, which is running on an anti-corruption slate with a heavy focus on social and economic issues. Moshe Kahlon, the popular former Likud minister, has a squeaky clean image with the public, fed up by a spate of corruption scandals involving leading politicians and even a former prime minister.

Kulanu released a statement late Thursday saying that two years ago, “Kobi was the victim of a blackmailing attempt by a police commander.

“Kobi now serves as state’s witness [in the case] against this corrupt commander,” the statement read. Kulanu said Kobi Kahlon was told by police that the case against him was closed and was awaiting final, formal closure by the prosecutor’s office.

“Unfortunately, there are some who are trying to make political, manipulative use of this [affair] to harm the Kulanu party.”