Judge resigns after suspected eight-year tax evasion

Dan Mor agrees to resign from office as a result of investigation’s findings, and requests to be allowed to pay a penalty.

By JOANNA PARASZCZUK
Suspect in court judge handcuffs arrest hearing 311 (photo credit: Thinkstock/Imagebank)
Suspect in court judge handcuffs arrest hearing 311
(photo credit: Thinkstock/Imagebank)
The Justice Ministry announced on Monday that a Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court judge has been investigated by the police on suspicion of evading taxes during an eight-year period.
The tax authorities began to suspect Judge Dan Mor, who was appointed a senior judge in the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court in April 2010, was possibly evading taxes after a random audit was conducted into his son’s tax returns.
That audit revealed that from 2000-2007, revenue from a rental property owned by Mor was reported as his son’s income, despite the fact that the income had been Mor’s.
As a result of Mor’s son reporting the income, Mor’s own taxes were reduced by NIS 211,000.
The attorney-general then approved a covert police investigation into Mor’s taxes, in accordance with the Basic Law on The Judiciary.
Mor was subsequently questioned under caution over the affair in May 2010, and Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch was informed.
Following an extensive investigation into the matter, Attorney- General Yehuda Weinstein has determined that an evidentiary basis exists to suspect Mor of failing to report income from rental property for income tax purposes, the Justice Ministry said in a statement.
Mor agreed to resign from office as a result of the investigation’s findings, and requested to be allowed to pay a penalty.
Though the attorney-general agreed to accept Mor’s request, the final decision regarding ending criminal proceedings against Mor and the size of the penalty he will pay are to be determined by the Tax Authority’s Penalties Committee, the Justice Ministry noted.
The case against Mor’s son has been closed.