Talansky. Fears incrimination
Photo: Dudi Vaaknin
Olmert. Round six
Photo: Reuters
State to appeal to US against use of Talansky testimony as evidence
One week after key witness in probe against PM announces he will not come back to continue testifying due to fears he may incriminate himself in US courts, Lador declares will appeal to US authorities to refrain from using testimony material
State Prosecutor Moshe Lador and Jerusalem District Prosecutor Eli Abarbanel plan to appeal to US authorities on Friday, to request that they refrain from using material from Morris Talansky's testimony in Israel against him.
Talansky's Announcement
Aviad Glickman
State's key witness in PM bribery probe informs Justice Ministry he will not return to Israel for second testimony. Decision made due to Talansky's US lawyers' fear he may incriminate himself. Olmert's legal team to 'consider ramifications'
Talansky's attorneys, Jacques Chen and Joshua Resnik, explained the issues that arose from Talansky's testimony. In response Lador and Abarbanel launched a letter saying it was within their realm of authority to promise that Talansky's testimony in Israel would not provide evidence against him in the US.
In addition, Lador and Abarbanel said that "the prosecution plans to appeal to US authorities and ask them to agree to make a similar statement regarding possible procedures in the US." They also plan to clarify the US authorities' stance on disregarding material from Talansky's previous testimonies in Israel.
However the prosecution stated that "disregarding the prosecution's appeal to the US authorities and their response, we of course expect Talansky to fulfill his obligations on this issue and arrive in Israel at the end of the month to complete his testimony."
Olmert's Communications Advisor Amir Dan commented on the issue and said, "The State Prosecutor's office understands very well that the preliminary testimony taken from Talansky was wrong, and that it melted away during cross examination, and is only getting more and more complicated. The very act of requesting immunity just shows how trust worthy the witness is."
Meanwhile, investigators of the police's National Fraud Unit are set to question the prime minister under caution for the sixth time Friday morning. The interrogation is expected to last about two hours, and according to sources it will not be Olmert's final round of questioning.
