A “very senior” academic and a prominent lawyer were interrogated under caution by the police’s Lahav 433 major crimes unit as part of the investigation of Likud lawmaker Hanoch Milwidsky for alleged sex offenses and witness tampering, Channel 12 reports.
According to the report, the two unnamed suspects, along with Milwidsky, are accused of involvement in efforts to tamper with the testimony of a woman who had made sexual assault allegations against Michael Leitman, head of the “Bnei Baruch — Kabbalah La’am” religious group, where Milwidsky served as legal adviser before being elected to the Knesset in 2022.
It is unclear from the report if the two unnamed suspects are part of the group, which has been accused of cult-like behavior and reportedly forms a large voting bloc within the Likud.
Citing a senior law enforcement official, Channel 12 says the group has been refusing to cooperate with the investigation and intimidating women who are thinking of talking to the police. Because of this, the report says, police have had difficulty gathering and questioning witnesses.
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