Lahav 443 arrests senior Interior Ministry official in corruption probe
Member of Population, Immigration and Border Authority charged with bribery, fraud
By DANIEL K. EISENBUDUpdated: FEBRUARY 20, 2018 02:59Illustrative photo of handcuffs(photo credit: ING IMAGE/ASAP)
An unidentified senior official from the Interior Ministry’s Population, Immigration and Border Authority was arrested on Monday morning on multiple corruption charges, following an undercover investigation by the Lahav 443 National Crime Unit.While details of the investigation remain unclear, police said the suspect is being charged with breach of trust, bribery and fraud. A second unidentified suspect was also arrested, although it was not immediately known if he or she is also an employee of the ministry.“The investigation developed with suspicions that the suspect, a worker of the Immigration Authority, is allegedly involved in businesses and connected with owners of private offices and foreign workers taking advantage of those connections for personal benefits,” said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld.Members of the elite investigative unit, in coordination with the authority, searched the offices and homes of both suspects, seizing files, computers and cell phones, before the suspects were arraigned at Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court.A judge is expected to extend their remand pending the ongoing investigation.Lahav 443 said in a statement that it will continue to crackdown on all corruption by public officials.“The Israel Police will continue to investigate and expose unlawful processes involving conflicts of interest, and to seek and investigate whenever there is suspicion of public corruption that negatively impacts the standards of government,” the statement read.
