Petah Tikva Mayor Suspected of Bribery Over NIS 1 Million

The economic department of the State Prosecutor's Office has notified the attorneys for Petah Tikva Mayor Rami Greenberg, Municipality Director General Yaniv Banita, and eight other suspects of its intention to consider indictments for corruption offenses. Depending on individual roles, charges could include bribery, fraud, abuse of office, document forgery, and tax offenses. A final decision will be made after preliminary hearings.

Investigators allege that during the 2018 mayoral election campaign, Greenberg received over one million shekels in cash and other benefits from businessmen and associates, which funded his campaign expenses. Among those suspected of offering bribes are Director General Yaniv Banita, and businessmen Moshe Saadon, Natanel Zar, and Amnon Ben-Ami.

Prosecutors believe the funds were provided to Greenberg in exchange for actions he took or promised to take in his official capacity, including after his election as mayor. Some suspects allegedly attempted to conceal the illegal campaign financing by providing false information about the sources of funds to the state comptroller, possibly using forged documents.

Moshe Greenberg, lawyers Tal Gershtein and Shai Partush, and Nir Banita are among other suspects accused of involvement in providing false information about election financing. The investigation was conducted by the national police fraud investigation unit in collaboration with the Israel Tax Authority's "Yaal" unit.

The prosecution emphasized that no decision on indictments has been made yet. The suspects have the right to present their arguments at preliminary hearings before a final decision is reached on whether to bring the case to court.