Gaydamak summoned for hearing over money laundering, fraud allegations

State Prosecution considering indicting J'lem mayoral candidate.

gaydamak aj 224.88 (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
gaydamak aj 224.88
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
The Taxation and Economic Department of the Tel Aviv District Attorney's Office on Thursday offered Arkady Gaydamak a hearing and informed him they were considering indicting him on charges of money-laundering and fraud. The investigation has been underway since March 2005 and involves suspicions that he deposited millions of dollars into accounts held by one of his employees, Nahum Galmar, in Bank Hapoalim on Hayarkon St. in Tel Aviv. The money, which Gaydamak allegedly did not declare, came from Kazak Phosphates, a company he owns in Kazakhastan. In February 2006, the police announced that there was sufficient evidence against Gaydamak to indict him. Since the investigation began, Gaydamak has waged war against the police and the state prosecution in a series of full-page ads that he took out from time to time in the country's leading papers.