Boaz Yona, the fugitive CEO of the Heftziba construction company, met with his attorney on Monday for the first time since he was arrested last week in an Italian village near Verona.  Yona reportedly told his attorney, Yair Golan, that he had not fled Israel in order to escape prosecution, but rather had traveled to Romania in order to collect funds for the floundering company.

Yona expressed disappointment with media portrayals of his actions, which include allegedly defrauding the company of NIS 70 million.  Yona claimed he had saved “at least 2,000 families” from the fate of other Heftziba customers by taking loans on the black market.  He said he was willing to return to Israel and stand trial, but wants to weigh his options before agreeing to extradition.