Olmert’s attorneys demand additional inquiry in Talansky case
Morris Talansky arrives in Israel for five-day cross-examination; prime minister’s attorney turns to Jerusalem District Court for additional interrogation time following receipt of material concerning Talansky’s financial activities in US
The prime minister's attorneys sent a letter to the Jerusalem District Court Thursday, requesting the judges set a date for another round of questioning.
In the letter, sent by Attorney Eli Zohar to the judges hearing Talansky’s testimony, a claim was made saying the while the key witness will be cross-examined for the duration of five full days, there is a need for additional investigation.
The need, said Zohar, is based on a notification received by his team, that additional material connected to the witness was collected during the due diligence procedure conducted in the United States by the Deputy Prosecutor of the Jerusalem District, Attorney Uri Korev.
The new investigative material will be duely transferred to the defense team but according to Zohar, “these are, amongst other things, statements collected by Morris Talansky’s business partners in the US. The material is expected to shed light on his financial procedures which raise numerous questions. These testimonies are expected to be significant in Talansky’s cross-examinations.”
This is the reason Zohar is requesting to set a date for additional testimony after the new material is transferred in order to allow Ehud Olmert and Shula Zaken’s advocates to prepare themselves accordingly.
Talansky arrived in Israel yesterday prior to his preliminary testimony which will take place next week at the Jerusalem District Court. Talansky is expected to meet with his team of advisers in order to plan the cross-examination by the prime ministers’ attorneys.
On May 28, Talansky testified for seven hours at the Jerusalem District Court and explained that he provided Olmert with envelopes filled with money and credit cards and with flights, exclusive hotel accommodations, and a generous loan of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
His testimony led to a political hurling in which Defense Minister Ehud Barak called for Olmert’s resignation and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni called for early primary elections.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will be interrogated on Friday for the third time since the affair came to light. Investigators from the police’s National Fraud Unit will arrive at the prime minister’s official residence and will interrogate him in the framework of the suspicions against him.
