Tax Authority director Jackie Matza
Photo: Ofer Amram
Former Israel Tax
Authority director Jackie Matza was convicted Sunday of breach of trust and assisting in granting a bribe.
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As part of a plea bargain, the charge of accepting a bribe was removed from the revised indictment, which was submitted to the Petah Tikva District Court.
The primary finding of the investigation was that during his tenure as Tax Authority director, Matza involved two businessmen - Kobi Ben-Gur and Yoram Karashi - in Tax Authority appointments.
Karashi is the brother of Shula Zaken, who served as Ehud Olmert's bureau chief during his tenures as prime minister and finance minister.
Matza admitted that Ben-Gur and Karashi advanced his appointment as Tax Authority chief and later demanded his assistance in promoting Tax Authority employees.
As part of the plea bargain, Matza admitted to five counts of breach of trust.
According to the revised indictment, Matza also helped Ben-Gur bribe Tax Authority official Orna Bachar.
The State Prosecutor's Office said Matza's admission of guilt "sends an important and deterring message to civil servants in the fight against corruption in the public sector."
According to the indictment, Ben-Gur and Karashi bribed Tax Authority officials to advance the appointments of other Authority officials.
The scandal was made public in January 2007, when police raided the homes of Matza, Zaken and other suspects in the case.
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