Former senior Shas party official R’ Shlomo Benizri appears to have exhausted all his options and is heading for prison, where he will be serving a four-year sentence following a conviction on fraud, bribery, breach of trust and related charges.

Benizri appealed a lighter sentence to the High Court while the state simultaneously appealed, seeking a harsher sentence. The court saw eye-to-eye with the state and increased the former cabinet minister’s sentence to four years. Benizri then called on the High Court of Justice to convene in a larger forum to hear yet another appeal, but this was turned down, signaling the end of his legal battle to avoid a jail sentence.

Justice Eliezer Rivlin in his ruling stated that after reviewing the request filed by Benizri’s attorney, he saw no reason to grant yet another hearing in the matter.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)