Haim Katz
Photo: Alex Kolomoisky
Minister Haim Katz suspected of taking bribes
Israel Securities Authority questions the welfare and labor minister for the second time, on suspicion of being bribed by close associate Moti Ben-Aryeh; Katz was previously questioned on suspicion of using inside information to profit NIS 290,000 at the stock market.
Welfare and Labor Minister Haim Katz was questioned under caution for the second time by the Israel Securities Authority (ISA) two weeks ago, this time on the suspicion he received bribes.
Financial advisor Moti Ben-Aryeh, a close associate of Katz, was also questioned again on suspicion of bribing the minister.
It is currently unclear what the nature of the bribes given is but Katz is alleged to have received inside information from Ben-Aryeh that enabled him to profit financially.
Minister Haim Katz (Photo: George Ginsburg)
Katz was allegedly told by Ben-Aryeh about an impending deal between two real estate companies he has been working for since 1999, Nitsba Holdings and Airport City.
Before the deal was reported to the stock exchange, which would have led many investors to buy stocks and thus raise their value, Katz and Ben-Aryeh bought Nitsba stocks.
In order to avoid raising suspicion and to avoid having the stock's value spike before the report to the stock exchange, Katz and Ben-Aryeh allegedly bought the stocks over the course of several days.
Airport City then offered to buy Nitsba's shares from the public at 23 percent over the price it was being traded for at the time.
As a result, Katz and Ben-Aryeh have allegedly made NIS 290,000 in profit when Airport City bought the stocks from them.
The ISA defined Ben-Aryeh as someone with very close social and business ties to Katz. He is also considered a close associate of billionaire Kobi Maimon and advises companies controlled by Maimon.
Maimon controls both Nitsba and Airport City and also has dealings in the natural gas business. He is also considered a close associate of Katz, as well as of Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon.
Because of their ties to Maimon, both Kahlon and Katz opted out of voting on Knesset and government decisions relating to the natural gas plan.
The ISA is an investigative body with enforcement authorities that has been using advanced systems recently to identify insider trading and fraud.
It first questioned Katz, who cooperated with investigators, last May on the suspicion he used insider information to profit from trading securities.
The questioning, which received the approval of the attorney general, was accompanied by the Tel Aviv District Attorney's Taxation and Economics Department.
Ben-Aryeh was arrested and then released under restrictive conditions. He was barred from leaving the country and his bail was set at NIS 1 million.
Both Katz and Ben-Aryeh have denied the allegations made against them.
The minister said on Monday, "I regret the fact that half-truths and disinformation are being leaked to the press in an effort to hurt my good name. I'm certain that the clouds hanging over my head will disappear and I will not be accused of any wrongdoing. I said what I had to say to the investigators, fully cooperating, and have yet to see fit to hire a lawyer."
The ISA declined comment on the report.
