The Tel Aviv Municipality has been rocked by another corruption scandal, as Israel Police forces raided the municipality’s offices and arrested several senior city officials and businessmen. One of the businessmen arrested has ties to a major candidate for the upcoming Tel Aviv mayoral elections.
On Sunday and Monday police confiscated documents relating to the latest scandal to hit the municipality, the second such scandal in recent weeks. Police are investigating allegations of money laundering, fraud, tax evasion, bribery, aggravated fraudulent receiving and breach of trust.
Yair Zabari was one of several businessmen and real estate developers among those arrested and detained for questioning. Zabari is a candidate running for a slot in the Tel Aviv municipal council in the upcoming municipal elections, along with Maj.-Gen. (res.) Oren Shachor, a retired IDF officer who announced last week that he will be running for mayor.
Shachor is one of several candidates running on the People of the City list, which was founded by Zabari.
This week’s scandal is the second corruption scandal facing the Tel Aviv Municipality in just over a month. In July the so-called "Parking Lot scandal" also implicated a number of developers and municipal officials.