Kadima treasurer Itzik Hadad and two other men were arrested on Tuesday, after
the party filed a complaint of suspicious conduct to the police.
The
three are suspected of theft by a manager, fraud, breach of trust, forgery of
official documents and other offenses. The Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court
extended their remand for five days, after police said they feared Hadad would
try to obstruct the ongoing investigation.
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Shaul Mofaz: I will be the next prime ministerChairwoman Tzipi Livni asked
the party’s internal comptroller to investigate Hadad, who has been Kadima’s
treasurer since its establishment in 2006, due to discrepancies in the party’s
finances and a suspicion of conflict of interest.
Kadima legal adviser
Eitan Haberman complained to the police and the State Comptroller’s Office
earlier this month, after seeing the probe’s results. The police then
began a confidential investigation, which was announced to the public on
Tuesday.
Hadad’s attorney, Moshe Zchoot, said that Hadad was a normative
man and was not likely to disrupt any investigation. Hadad’s “life had
been destroyed” by his arrest and the allegations against him, Zchoot said.
In agreeing to extend Hadad’s detention, Judge Abraham Heiman noted that there
had been an extensive undercover investigation into the alleged corruption and
said that there was sufficient evidence to raise concerns that Hadad might
disrupt the probe.
Livni explained her complaint to the police, saying
that “any time there is a doubt, no matter how small, that the integrity of
public servants and politicians has been compromised, the authorities must be
notified immediately.”
The Kadima leader called on the police and the
State Comptroller’s Office to “take all measures necessary to minimize these
phenomena. This is how Kadima has acted, and we encourage every party
with any doubts about the behavior of its administrators to
behave.”
Speaking to party MKs after the investigation was made public,
Livni said, “I believe that the process of ‘cleaning’ is necessary in the
political system. Therefore, I chose to take an unusual step, even if it is
unpleasant.”
Kadima members must “set a personal example for all citizens
who want to turn to the police when they suspect a crime has been committed.
This is the right thing to do,” Livni said.
Ben Hartman contributed to
this report.