Minister questioned by police over 2020 traffic incident, after dodging for months

May Golan, who for months evaded police requests, finally appears at Tel Aviv station, and is released without conditions; she allegedly ran a red light and injured a motorcyclist

Social Equality Minister May Golan, at the Knesset plenum, in Jerusalem, January 8, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Social Equality Minister May Golan, at the Knesset plenum, in Jerusalem, January 8, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Social Equality Minister May Golan (Likud) was questioned by police under caution on Tuesday over her alleged role in hitting and injuring a motorcyclist with her car in 2020.

After providing her version of the story, Golan was released without conditions, the police said in a statement, noting that the investigation will continue.

Golan’s office, in a statement quoted by Hebrew media, said the minister appeared at the central Tel Aviv police station independently, and that she answered all questions posed to her.

Golan had, for more than half a year, avoided answering police questions about the incident, despite being summoned several times to appear. Police suspect that, in August 2020, Golan ran a red light and collided with a motorcyclist as a result, leaving him slightly injured.

The case was closed on account of Golan’s parliamentary immunity, but was reopened in or shortly before June 2024, with Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara’s approval, following an appeal by the motorcyclist.

Golan is a right-wing firebrand who first gained public attention when she campaigned against the housing of illegal migrants in her home neighborhood of south Tel Aviv.

Last week, Channel 12 aired an exposé into Golan’s conduct, claiming there was widespread nepotism in her office and that she repeatedly misused funds intended for her nonprofit and mistreated employees in her office.

Her office denied the allegations, claiming that some of the recordings aired used artificial intelligence to mimic her voice.

Police are reportedly planning on contacting the Attorney General’s Office to request that it approve an initial check into Golan’s allegedly criminal financial activities, though a spokesman for the attorney general told The Times of Israel that the police had not yet reached out, and that the office would deal with any such request when the time comes.

Most Popular
read more: