By JPOST.COM STAFF
Israeli mogul and owner of the Betar Jerusalem Football Club Arkadi Gaydamak was hit Thursday with an indictment alleging he laundered some NIS 650 million. Nahum Galmor, Gaydamak's business partner, and two senior executives in Poalim Trust, Haim Shamir and Shlomo Recht, were also indicted.
In addition, Ram Levy, Poalim Trust's legal adviser, and Keren Lalom, customer liaison manager at Bank Hapoalim, were indicted with a series of offenses including money laundering and fraud.
According to the charge sheet, the heads of Poalim Trust colluded with Gaydamak in order to facilitate the illegal purchase of a Dutch company. Galmor is alleged to have been presented as the buyer, with NIS 50 million of Gaydamak's money presented as belonging to Galmor. The indictment says the senior executives exploited the reputation of Bank Hapoalim to lend a seal of approval to actions constituting money laundering and fraud, in Gaydamak's case amounting to NIS 650 million.
The company and its top officers are also accused of preventing reports of Gaydamak's illegal activities from reaching either the Israel Money Laundering Prohibition Authority (IMPA) or other customers of the bank. Levy and Lalom are personally charged with acting thus in two specific cases.
The prosecution seeks to confiscate NIS 40 million from the accounts of Poalim Trust, should the company's employees be found guilty. The funds in question belong to Poalim Trust, not to clients invested there.
Gaydamak is currently on a trip to Russia. He left NIS 4 million as bail when he left the country. In case he fails to return to Israel, it will be confiscated.
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