Omri Sharon is suspected of setting up dummy companies to direct cash to his father's 1999 campaign to win the Likud primaries. The two bogus companies were Annex Research and the Institute for Peace and Security, which both transferred unusually large sums to individuals working with Sharon in the 1999 primaries and in his 2001 prime ministerial campaign. The senior Sharon said at the time that the money was disbursed without his knowledge, and promised to return it. Omri Sharon chose to remain silent during his interrogation to avoid incriminating himself.
Mazuz is now expected to request that the Knesset remove the younger Sharon’s parliamentary immunity so that he can face prosecution. If he is convicted, he may spend up to seven years in prison and face fines.
Though the case against PM Sharon was closed due to “insufficient evidence,” Mazuz stressed that did not mean that Sharon’s actions had been completely legitimate. Citing insufficient evidence, he also said he would close the case against former Sharon bureau chiefs Uri Shani and Dov Weisglass (currently a senior Sharon adviser), who were also suspects in the case.
This is not the first time Mazuz has cleared the prime minister of wrongdoing. Last year, he decided not to indict Sharon on similar charges. Some analysts point to the Sharon family's ongoing legal troubles as a factor contributing to the political about-face displayed by PM Sharon.
MK Rabbi Benny Elon (National Union) condemned the decision, saying it reeked of political considerations. “This is the second time that he closed the case against Sharon, this time indicting his son for actions that were obviously carried out at the behest of his father,” he said.
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Mazuz is now expected to request that the Knesset remove the younger Sharon’s parliamentary immunity so that he can face prosecution. If he is convicted, he may spend up to seven years in prison and face fines.
Though the case against PM Sharon was closed due to “insufficient evidence,” Mazuz stressed that did not mean that Sharon’s actions had been completely legitimate. Citing insufficient evidence, he also said he would close the case against former Sharon bureau chiefs Uri Shani and Dov Weisglass (currently a senior Sharon adviser), who were also suspects in the case.
This is not the first time Mazuz has cleared the prime minister of wrongdoing. Last year, he decided not to indict Sharon on similar charges. Some analysts point to the Sharon family's ongoing legal troubles as a factor contributing to the political about-face displayed by PM Sharon.
MK Rabbi Benny Elon (National Union) condemned the decision, saying it reeked of political considerations. “This is the second time that he closed the case against Sharon, this time indicting his son for actions that were obviously carried out at the behest of his father,” he said.