Three weeks have passed since the case involving former military advocate general Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi erupted. She has been hospitalized at Ichilov Medical Center for the past 10 days. On Sunday, the period of house arrest imposed on her ended, and police did not ask to extend it.
“The number of days is irrelevant as long as she remains hospitalized. After her release, the need for continued restrictions will be examined,” a police official said. Still, police sent an urgent request to apply the arrest conditions to any medical facility, including assigning several supervisors.
At the beginning of the incident, sources told ynet, after Tomer-Yerushalmi was found on the beach following an alleged suicide attempt, a professional evaluation determined she was mentally fit to remain under arrest.
Police have so far not found unusual information in the devices seized from her. “The matter is not complex, the suspicions are not complex and most details of the case are already known to investigators,” a police official said, adding that the investigation appears to be in its final stages.
Even so, the probe is being conducted with tight compartmentalization and without public explanations. Since the case broke, police have issued only one official statement, and that came after media outlets had already reported the arrests of Tomer-Yerushalmi and former chief military prosecutor Matan Solmesh. No official updates have been released since on the progress of the investigation or findings from her mobile phone.
On Sunday, the High Court of Justice published its ruling on petitions concerning oversight of the investigation. The court determined that State Ombudsman for Judges Retired Judge Asher Kola cannot serve as supervisor but allowed Justice Minister Yariv Levin to select another candidate. The justices said Levin cannot appoint anyone he chooses. The supervisor must be a senior state employee, a recognized legal expert who actively works with criminal investigations and prosecutions. The official must be a senior professional figure in the fields of investigation and criminal prosecution, and Levin must avoid selecting anyone with political ties.
Tomer-Yerushalmi, who admitted involvement in the leaked video, is suspected of fraud and breach of trust, abuse of office, obstruction of justice and providing information by a public employee. She posted a 20,000 shekels bond, but police did not request the surrender of her passport or a ban on leaving the country.
She told investigators she did not involve former IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant or Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara in the leak. The focus of the investigation concerns the suspicion that she provided false information regarding the review of the leak in the Sde Teiman affair.