State Prosecutor Moshe Lador today closed the investigation against Prime Minister Ehud Olmert over the privatization of Bank Leumi (TASE: LUMI) on the grounds of insufficient evidence for an indictment.
The primary suspicion against Olmert in this affair was based on claims by former Accountant General Yaron Zelekha that, in the second half of 2005, Olmert, who was minister of finance at the time, tried to use his influence to bring about the sale of the state's holding in Bank Leumi to a group of buyers that included a personal friend, Frank Lowy.
The Ministry of Justice stated that no evidentiary basis was found for Zelekha's accusations. No evidence was found that Olmert leaked information about the sale to Lowy. In addition, statements by Lowy and his aides that he never intended to buy the Bank Leumi shares strengthens the evidence that some of Lowy's advisers pointed to the shortcomings of the deal and that no final decision was ever made to carry out a transaction.
The Ministry of Justice adds that, as far as the sale of the controlling core of Bank Leumi was concerned, no evidence was found that Olmert acted on behalf of Lowy or sought to change the sale process to favor Lowy's interests. On the contrary, although Olmert tried to amend the sale process, mainly at the request of the Lowy group, he did so in ways that also served the interests of all the strategic investors that were interested in acquiring the controlling interest in Bank Leumi.
The investigation found that Olmert did have fairly insignificant conflicts of interests with members of the Lowy group, but no proof was found of deep relations or financial ties between Olmert and members of the group. Olmert's relations with Lowy were no different from ties between leaders and other personalities in the Jewish world.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on December 4, 2008
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