Police crack down on organized crime; 70 arrested
Police embark on biggest operation of last decade; hold simultaneous raids on known crime syndicate hubs nationwide
Over 1,000 police officers took part in one of the Police Department's biggest raids of the last decade: Tuesday night saw the force hold simultaneous raids on known crime syndicate hubs across Israel, arresting over 70 drug and arms dealers, including three women and a minor.
Among those arrested are various top figures in the Israeli underworld, including underbosses from the Mor crime family of Nahariya, the al-Hariri crime family of Umm al-Fahm and the Abu-Latif crime family of Rameh.
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The arrests were made possible largely due to the work of undercover agents and a police confidential informant (CI), who made dozens of drug and arms buys.
Over the course of the operation, the CI bought over 16 rifles, as well as numerous guns, explosives and various drugs.
Once the police had enough evidence, the raids were green-lighted and the nationwide operation was underway.
Two of the undercover agents (Photo: Avishag Shaar-Yashuv)
The Coastal Subdistrict Police, which headed the operation, said that five prominent members of the Mor crime family were arrested, including Michael Mor's "right-hand man." Mor himself is currently overseas.
Some 30 of those arrested are suspected of having direct involvement is serious crimes, mostly around the greater Akko area.
During the course of the raids, the police seized dozens of cars, motorcycles and ski jets, allegedly bought with ill-gotten gains. One of the vehicles seized was a BMW worth over NIS 1 million (roughly $270,000).
Authorities have also seized bank accounts holding hundreds of thousands of shekels.
Coastal Subdistrict Police Central Unit Commander Maj.-Gen. Eli Assayag said that the arrests and subsequent indictments will impact all major crime syndicates in Israel, and are likely to reduce the scope of major crimes.
Coastal District Police Commander Hagai Dotan awarded the undercover officers special citations.
"The dozens of indictment coming together today are evidence of the emphasis we place on unwavering enforcement," he said.
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