Senior IDF officer jailed for 80 months for sex offenses for filming nude soldiers, civilians

A former senior IDF officer convicted of dozens of counts of sex offenses and invasion of privacy for filming his female subordinates while nude without their knowledge has been sentenced by a military court to 80 months in jail.

Lt. Col. Dan Sharoni was arrested in 2021 for his actions, which included collecting sexual images of soldiers and some civilians over the course of at least eight years. He was dismissed from duty that year.

Last year, a military court convicted Sharoni of 67 offenses in total: 23 counts of indecency, 39 counts of privacy violation, three counts of illegally hacking a computer, one count of attempted indecency — for a case in which he installed a hidden camera in someone’s room but ultimately only photographed them fully clothed — and one count of conduct unbecoming a soldier.

After several hearings, the court sentenced Sharoni to an unprecedented six years and eight months in jail, along with a suspended sentence, and ordered to pay NIS 300,000 ($82,000) in damages to the 49 victims.

Sharoni is also being demoted to the rank of private, the lowest rank in the IDF. The demotion will take effect 45 days after the end of the legal proceedings.

During the sentencing hearing, “the military court emphasized the severity of the defendant’s actions, who exploited his authority and power and violated the trust placed in him as a commander,” the IDF says.

“The military court highlighted the serious harm caused by the defendant’s actions to the image of commanders in the IDF and to the military system as a whole. The court stressed the need to denounce such behavior and the duty to protect the security of all service members,” the military adds.