Former Prison Service Officer Convicted of Bribery

Arkady Shkovitzky, a former construction officer for the Israel Prison Service (IPS) in the Central District, has been convicted of accepting NIS 500,000 in bribes from contractors he employed. District Court Judge Michal Barnt also found Shkovitzky guilty of theft by a public servant, money laundering, and income tax offenses. His former wife, Natalia Shkovitzky, was convicted of concealing income exceeding NIS 120,000.

According to the indictment, Shkovitzky influenced the payment amounts to the main contractors, thereby affecting their profits from projects subcontracted to others. The contractors were dependent on Shkovitzky, who supervised their work, approved payments, assisted with oversight of their subcontractors, and could create significant difficulties for them. Shkovitzky dictated to the main contractors the identity of the subcontractors for specific jobs, effectively choosing who would perform the work for the IPS. He also sometimes dictated inflated pricing for the work to both main and subcontractors, ensuring additional profit for them and himself.

Shkovitzky denied all charges, claiming the case was fabricated and that he was targeted for exposing misconduct within the IPS. Judge Barnt rejected these claims, noting that the investigation began after inquiries from three unrelated parties. The judge stated that the willingness of many witnesses to incriminate themselves, along with extensive wiretap evidence, led to the conclusion that the claims of a fabricated case were unfounded.

The couple was also convicted of concealing income from a hotel they operated and a property they rented out. This conviction marks the final ruling in the "Money Cage" affair, which previously saw guilty pleas and convictions for Doron Taborinsky, Assaf Kraus, Benjamin Biton, Aharon Shaked, Shlomo Hatukha, Reuven Gonen, and Beni Bazov. The prosecution was represented by attorney Eliran Ashkenazi, and Shkovitzky by attorney Uriel Nazri.