Mulner in court Monday
צילום: ירון ברנר
Crime figure Mulner convicted of conspiracy, weapons charges
Court says security camera footage showing defendants concealing 7.65-mm. Baretta gun 'worth a thousand words'; apart from Mulner, seven more people convicted, three others acquitted in case
Senior mob figure Amir Mulner, one of the suspects in the assassination of mafia chief Yaakov Alperon in late 2008, was convicted by the Tel Aviv District Court on Monday for conspiracy to commit a crime and possession of a gun and a silencer.
Mulner and 16 other suspects arrested in November 2008 during a police raid on a Ramat-Gan apartment were charged with four criminal offenses. Mulner denied the charges against him, but security camera footage showed beyond a reasonable doubt that he was involved in trying to conceal a semi-automatic 7.65-mm. Baretta gun loaded with eight bullets, as well as the silencer and 11 additional bullets, in an area behind the apartment.
Seven more people were convicted in the case, while three others were acquitted.
The indictment against Mulner and his accomplices was filed in December. The prosecution claimed that they planned to "make lethal use" of the weapon.
"The conspirators hid the gun... with an intention to commit a crime or injustice or to allow someone else to carry out a crime or injustice," the indicted stated. It did not identify the intended victim of the criminal conspiracy.
In May a plea bargain was struck with three people who were charged in the case, including the apartment's owner Eli Reuven, according to which they will serve 12-15 months in prison.
During the trial Mulner accused police of trying to frame him and claimed that he was merely invited for lunch at Reuven's home. He said that following the meal he had heard someone speak of a gun that was brought to the premises.
"When I heard this I said out loud, 'Who is the idiot who brought that thing (gun)'," Mulner said in his testimony.
The security camera footage clearly showed the defendants trying to conceal the gun.
Judge Gilad Neuthal said the security camera served as an "impartial witness," adding that "a picture is worth a thousand words."
