Police preparing release of recommendations in Netanyahu cases
With the High Court summarily rejecting a petition to block police from publishing its conclusions on the illicit gifts, Arnon Mozes talks investigations, recommendations expected to be published Tuesday or Wednesday; Police Chief Alsheikh to attend Internal Affairs Committee's hearing on police's conduct.
With the High Court of Justice summarily rejecting a petition to block police from publishing its recommendations, it is estimated that recommendations on the possible indictment of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Cases 1000 and 2000 will be published either Tuesday or Wednesday.
Case 1000 concerns illicit gifts Netanyahu allegedly received from business moguls Arnon Milchan and James Packer, whereas Case 2000 concerns talks the premier had with Yedioth Ahronoth owner and publisher Arnon Mozes regarding the Israel Hayom daily.
The petition rejected by the High Court sought to prevent the police from attaching recommendations to cases it had investigated in general, and Netanyahu's cases in particular.
It was submitted by right-wing activist attorney Yossi Fuchs, who demanded Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan to instruct Police Commissioner Roni Alsheikh not to include police recommendations on indictment in investigation conclusions.
On Sunday, Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit asked the police to hold off on releasing their recommendations in the cases against Netanyahu until the state has a chance to respond to Fuchs' petition.
The State Attorney's Office, meanwhile, said the petition was to be rejected, clarifying that the police do not give the prosecution a "recommendation" as to whether a suspect should be indicted but merely summarize the case.
"All that the police provide, in accordance with the attorney general's instructions ... is a summary of the investigation file and its position regarding the entirety of the evidentiary infrastructure that was created during the investigation," the state's response to the High Court said.
"The public security minister has no involvement in police investigations and is not kept abreast of their minutiae. That is the general rule, as well the one pertaining to the investigation which this petition concerns."
Justices Uri Shoham, Yael Willner and George Karra stated in their decision that the petition should be "summarily rejected due to the absence of grounds to intervene in the respondents' actions."
"Police do not provide prosecution with recommendations on whether to indict," the judges added, "but rather sum up the investigative materials in accordance with the attorney general's recommendations. This decision also pertains when the State Attorney's Office receives a summation for an investigation concerning (Netanyahu)."
With the petition rejected, police is now expected to forward their conclusions in the two cases to the prosecution. Before they do, however, Commissioner Alsheikh was invited by Likud MK Yoav Kish to participate in his Internal Affairs Committee's hearing on "examining the police's conduct vis-à-vis the prime minister's investigations," to be held Wednesday.
Alsheikh's claims that police investigators working on Netanyahu's investigations were themselves under surveillance by private investigators—voiced during the Uvda investigative journalism program—will be broached.
Commissioner Alsheikh met with his organization's senior brass last week to discuss the recommendations, with seeming consensus forming on recommending charging Netanyahu on the illicit gifts affair, as sufficient evidence exists to indict him for receiving bribes.
Former head of the police's Investigations and Intelligence Division Meni Yitzhaki, its current head Gadi Siso, Lahav 433 Commander Roni Rittman and chief of the National Unit for Fraud Investigations Koresh Barnur were also present at the meeting with Alsheikh.
In his interview to Uvda, Alsheikh claimed that "powerful elements" involved in the premier's investigations attempted to collect intelligence on police officers involved in the cases.
The prime minister attacked the police chief in response, saying, "It's shocking to discover that the police commissioner is repeating the delusional and false insinuation that the prime minister sent private investigators against police officers who are investigating him."
Arnon Mozes is the publisher and owner of Yedioth Ahronoth Group, which includes Ynet and Ynetnews.
