Illustration
Photo: Index Open
Police officer convicted of fraud
Tayibe police officer Avner Dahari found guilty of fraud, breach of trust, abuse of office after prosecution proves he stole mobile phone from illegal Palestinian aliens he arrested. Second officer indicted acquitted
The Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court convicted Tayibe police officer Avner Dahari of stealing cellular phones from suspects he arrested in the line of duty.
Wednesday's ruling found Dahari guilty of fraud, breach of trust and abuse of office. Officer Kobi Ben Aroyah, who was facing similar charges, was acquitted.
The indictment alleged that in 2008 the two entered a house in Tzur Yitzhak, a community in central Israel, in search of illegal Palestinian aliens. One man was detained during the search and Dahari confiscated his cell phone.
One month later, Dahari and Ben Aroyah detained a teenager, who was also in Israel illegally, and confiscated his cell phone. They eventually returned the SIM card, but kept the actual device.
A third count of the indictment alleged that in April of 2008, the two arrested two Palestinian, taking a cell phone, tools and some NIS 780 (roughly $205).
Ben Aroyah later told Internal Affairs Bureau investigators that while he behaved in an unprofessional manner towards Palestinian detainees – conduct he said derived from his family loosing several people to terror attacks – he never stole from them.
In the case of the detained teenager, Dahari claimed he returned the cell phone.
The court noted in its ruling that Ben Aroyah's candor and the fact that he admitted to conduct unbecoming contributed to his credibility.
Dahari's version of the events, added the court, cannot be considered reliable, especially when the prosecution was able to prove he was selling cellular phones to a store in Qalansawe, in the Triangle.
