The Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office today (Thursday) filed an indictment in the city district court against Gabi Magenzi, 50, and Magenzi Infrastructure Ltd. for committing bribery, fraud and breach of trust and receiving anything fraudulently under aggravated circumstances.
According to the indictment filed, through attorneys Rivka Alkobi and Nati Ben Hamo, Magenzi committed serious offenses in three different local authorities – in the Mateh Yehuda, Ashkelon and Rosh HaAyin regional councils. The suspicions were investigated in three parallel large-scale cases by the National Fraud Investigation Unit in Blade 433. As detailed in the indictment, Magenzi – a businessman and contractor, acted to advance his economic interests and the companies he owned, interests estimated at hundreds of millions of shekels, by transferring bribes amounting to hundreds of thousands of shekels For government officials in local authorities, including former Yehuda Regional Council chairman Moshe Dadon, former Ashkelon mayor Itamar Shimoni, and former Rosh HaAyin mayor Yigal Yanai.
The indictment includes three charges:
Charge 1 – Mateh Yehuda case, during the years 2010 – 2015 Magenzi, through Magenzi Infrastructure Ltd., submitted candidates in various tenders in the field of construction and infrastructure in the Mateh Yehuda Regional Council, and even won some of them. Magenzi won these tenders in Mateh Yehuda fraudulently, after receiving confidential inside information Regarding the tenders, and acted illegally in order to influence the determination of the threshold conditions regarding some of the tenders. All this in order to improve the chances of Magnezi Infrastructure Ltd. winning tenders in the council illegally, and to promote the many economic interests he and the council had.
Magenzi served as the council’s “home contractor,” and carried out almost exclusively the construction, development, and infrastructure work on the council. In the years 2010 – 2015 for all the work carried out through the companies in the Magenzi Group in the council, Magenzi Ltd. earned a cumulative amount of about NIS 137 million. Magnesi’s huge economic interests in the council – sometimes by taking action in their favor while deviating, bias and preference, and out of a conflict of interest.
For these actions of Dadon, Magenzi gave Dadon on two occasions a bribe of no less than NIS 200,000 in cash. In one case, the bribe money was transferred to him in an envelope that was hidden between the folds of architectural plans, and in another case the bribe money was hidden in wine packaging. Dadon has long been prosecuted by the Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office for taking bribes from Magenzi and other offenses, and was convicted, among other things, of taking NIS 200,000 bribes from Magenzi. His sentence was sentenced by the Jerusalem District Court to 47 months’ imprisonment, a fine and significant forfeiture.
Charge 2 – Ashkelon Affair, Since 2012, the warehouses of Ashkelon Municipality have had significant economic interests, in view of the fact that he competed in various tenders worth tens of millions of shekels, in the field of construction, development and infrastructure in Ashkelon. Magenzi competed in these tenders through Magenzi Infrastructure Ltd., as well as through other companies that he controlled. Magenzi won a significant portion of the tenders he competed in in Ashkelon.
During the period in which Magenzi was active in the Ashkelon municipality, Magenzi gave Mayor Shimoni a bribe of NIS 100,000 in cash. This is in exchange for actions related to fulfilling Shimoni’s role as mayor of Ashkelon and to promote the economic interests of Magenzi. The bribe money was transferred to Shimoni’s associate in the parking lot of a luxury hotel in Herzliya.
Shimoni has long been prosecuted by the Tax and Economics Prosecutor’s Office. The Tel Aviv District Court ruled, among other things, that Shimoni received NIS 100,000 from Magnezi, and convicted Shimoni of fraud and breach of trust. In Shimoni’s case, appeals were filed in the Supreme Court.
Charge 3 – The Rosh HaAyin affair, during the years 2012-2015, the warehouses had significant economic interests in the Rosh HaAyin municipality due to its bidding in various tenders worth tens of millions of shekels in the field of construction, development and infrastructure. During this period, Magenzi gave the then mayor Yigal Yanai a bribe of NIS 27,000 in cash, and tried another opportunity to give him a bribe of NIS 12,000, all in exchange for actions related to fulfilling Yanai’s role as mayor of Rosh HaAyin and a board member of a corporation. Ein Afek water, in order to promote the economic interests of Magenzi in Rosh HaAyin. The bribe money was transferred to Linai in a whiskey box. In another case, Magenzi paid for his joint flight with Yanai and their spouses to Greece.
The indictment in Magenzi’s case attributes to him five offenses of giving a bribe in the total amount of more than NIS 300,000, receiving anything fraudulently under aggravated circumstances, attempting to obtain anything fraudulently under aggravated circumstances, fraud and breach of trust and attempting to give a bribe. The case is being investigated by the National Fraud Investigation Unit (JHA) of the Israel Police.
The Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office stated: “The indictment is another link in the uncompromising struggle of the State Attorney’s Office and all law enforcement agencies, corruption in local authorities in particular, and government corruption in general. The indictment reveals the defendant’s serious actions, While harming the public interest and the proper functioning of the local government authorities. “
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