The three rings
Photo: Tiroche Auction House
Rings given by state's witness to Shula Zaken go on public auction
Three 18-Karat gold rings set with diamonds and estimated to be worth $2,000-$2,400 will go on sale March 24 after they were seized from Zaken, the former chief of staff to PM Olmert, who turned against him.
Three 18-Karat gold rings set with diamonds, which were given as a gift to Shula Zaken by the late Holyland state's witness Shmuel Dachner, are set to go on auction in two weeks.
The three rings, designed to look like snakes, are made up of white gold, yellow gold and pink gold respectively, and the diamonds set into the rings weigh a total of 1.00 ct.
The rings' worth is estimated at $2,000-$2,400, and they are accompanied with a note that states that "This ring was given as a gift to Mrs. Shula Zaken by State witness Shmuel Dachner in the 'Holyland' affair."
The three rings (Photo: Tiroche Auction House )
The Tiroche Auction House will put the rings on auction Saturday, March 24, on behalf of the Justice Department's Asset Forfeiture Unit.
The rings were seized from Zaken, who was the chief of staff to former prime minister Ehud Olmert.
Zaken was convicted for her role in the "Holyland" land development case, which found that both she and then-Jerusalem mayor Ehud Olmert had accepted bribes from property developers to overlook building codes and other restrictions for specific projects.
In 2014, Zaken struck a plea bargain and turned against Olmert to reduce her own sentence. She served only 11 months in prison, and in return provided recordings and new evidence against Olmert. She was also required to pay a NIS 25,000 fine and have NIS 75,000 in property seized, including the rings and a photo that had already been auctioned off.
Shmuel Dachner and Shula Zaken (Photos: Yuval Chen, Ido Erez)
In an unprecedented ruling that made him the first Israeli former prime minister to receive jail time, Olmert was sentenced to six years in prison, but his sentence was later reduced to 19 months. He was granted early release by the Parole Board after spending 16.5 months in prison.
During the trial, Zaken claimed she received the rings from Dachner as a gift and not as a bribe, but the court rejected her claims.
"There was a lot of romance. There was great love. I loved Dachner," Zaken said in court. She stressed, however, that the two did not have sexual relations.
She described their meetings at restaurants, saying Dachner "would make me feel like the queen of the world. He was my best friend."
