Former Ashkenazi chief rabbi Yona Metzger will serve three and a half years in prison and pay a fine of NIS 5 million ($1.3 million) after reaching a plea deal with prosecutors, the court says.
Under the deal Metzger pleads guilty to fraud, breach of trust and tax offenses, in exchange for a reduced jail sentence after facing a slew of corruption and bribery charges involving some NIS 10 million ($2.5 million).
Former chief rabbi of Israel Yona Metzger at the Jerusalem District Court during his corruption trial on July 21, 2016. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Last year, the Jerusalem District Court charged Metzger with accepting some NIS 10 million ($2.58 million) in bribes. He is accused of keeping NIS 7 million ($1.8 million) for himself.
Metzger stepped down as chief rabbi on July 24, 2013, due to the pending fraud investigation, just before the end of his 10-year term in office.
Israel has two chief rabbis, one Ashkenazi and one Sephardi, whose responsibilities include running the rabbinical courts and regulating the kosher food supervision industry.
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