Former Israeli PM Olmert convicted in bribery scandal

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was today convicted in a bribery scandal effectively sealing his chances of making a political comeback as he faces the humiliating prospect of becoming the first premier in Israel's history to serve jail time.
A Tel Aviv District court handed down the historic verdict against 68-year-old Olmert and several other high-profile personalities with Judge David Rosen slamming what he described as a "corrupt political system which has decayed over years and in which hundreds of thousands of shekels were transferred to elected officials".
According to the indictment, millions of dollars illegally changed hands to promote a series of property projects, including a controversial housing development in Jerusalem which required a radical change in zoning laws and earned the developers tax breaks and other benefits.

Olmert was Mayor of Jerusalem and Minister of Industry and Trade when these corrupt practices are said to have happened.
He later went on to become prime minister but had to resign under public pressure after a series of graft cases surfaced against him.
Completing nearly two years of what is being seen as the most high-profile case in independent Israel's history, Judge Rosen also convicted former Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupolianski, former Bank Hapoalim Chairman Dan Dankner, Olmert's former chief-of-staff Shula Zaken and, in total, 10 out of 13 individual defendants.

Three of the defendants are corporations.
Olmert's defence suffered a major jolt after Zaken entered into a plea bargain with the state.

As per the plea deal, she agreed to serve 11 months in jail and pay 100,000 shekels (USD 30,000) the state dropping its appeal to the Supreme Court against her acquittals on major charges (she was convicted on two minor counts) in the Jerusalem corruption trial and other provisions.
Though the state originally rejected Zaken's new evidence as insufficient, at the beginning of last week she produced to the state a series of cassette tapes which the state said provide a "serious suspicion" of obstruction of justice and witness tampering against Olmert.
By moving forward with the verdict, the plea bargain reportedly could require Zaken to cooperate with the state in filing a new indictment against Olmert for the obstruction of justice charges.

The judge in his verdict said that Olmert lied in court and cited Zaken's total devotion to her former boss as proof that he had to know about all of the bribes she was receiving from main state witness Shmuel Duchner.
Rosen even mentioned that Zaken got convicted in the prior Jerusalem corruption trial rather than testify against Olmert as an evidence of her loyalty towards him.
The former Israeli premier was accused of accepting over 1.5 million shekels (USD 300,000) in bribes (out of around 9 million shekels given to public officials in total), either directly or through Zaken or his brother Yossi to smooth over various legal and zoning obstacles around the infamous Holyland real estate project.

Sentencing arguments in the case are scheduled to begin on April 8.