Rishon Tours corruption trial resumes

Witness says Olmert's funding requests seemed "excessive."

olmert zaken 311 (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
olmert zaken 311
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
The Rishon Tours corruption trial against former prime minister Ehud Olmert and his bureau chief Shula Zaken resumed on Thursday at the Jerusalem District Court.
The prosecution continued calling representatives of various aid organizations to the stand to testify about their funding of Olmert's flights overseas for fundraising events.
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Yafit Nisan-Merom, a former employee of the Association for the wellbeing of Israel’s soldiers, testified that the former prime minister's flight funding requests, "seemed a bit excessive."
Nisan-Merom added, "We were asked to pay for first class flights for extra people," reported Army Radio.
The witness also said that if the Association for the wellbeing of Israel’s soldiers had known about the over funding they would have stopped it immediately because their policy is, "every shekel goes to soldiers."
Jerusalem District Court Judge Ya'akov Zaban reproached prosecutors for bringing in too many witnesses saying the same thing and bogging down the trial, according to Army Radio.
Prosecutor Uri Korev responded that all of the witnesses are important, and that each says things in his own particular way.