Top Israeli politicians have been imprisoned for everything from corruption to rape.
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| Shocking level of crime among Israel's top politicians: Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was a crook - One Israeli ex-president was imprisoned for rape. (Photo by Jonathan Klinger) |
Suspicions and accusations of bribery and corruption have hung over Ehud Olmert since the mid-1980s. He’s even received a suspended sentence in one case.
But it was not until Tuesday he achieved a truly dishonourable distinction. The 68-year-old Kadima party member became the first Israeli prime minister ever to be sent to prison. A president — Moishe Katzav — is serving a jail term for rape, and at least four cabinet ministers have done time, but not prime ministers.
What finally brought Olmert down was his acceptance of $145,000 in bribes in the Holyland Park real estate development.
Along with 12 other people, he was accused of corruption in allowing the building of this monumental multimillion dollar eyesore in Jerusalem. His penalty: Six years in jail and a fine of almost $300,000. His lawyers are expected to appeal to the Israeli Supreme Court.
In sentencing Olmert, Judge David Rozen took aim at the culture of entitlement that has enveloped Israel’s political elite. He also made it clear the ex-PM was to be punished more heavily than his co-conspirators precisely because he had held such high office, reports Yonah Jeremy Bob at the Jerusalem Post.
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