N.Y Time: March 28, 2024 2:32 pm

Ex-deputy minister Faina Kirschenbaum of Yisrael Beytenu convicted of bribery

Ex-deputy minister Faina Kirschenbaum of Yisrael Beytenu convicted of bribery

Besides skimming funds off the state budgets that Kirschenbaum granted to various public bodies, she was convicted of organizing a scheme, along with family members and members of  Yisrael Beytenu, to receive free hotel rooms, expensive electronic equipment, well-paid jobs, and a range of other illegal quid pro quo benefits.
Judge Yaron Levy said, “From 2009 and until the criminal probe went public, the defendant held tremendous power to allocate between NIS 80-200 million per year,” adding that Kirschenbaum skillfully circumvented a variety of laws designed to prevent corrupt use of public funds.
Kirschenbaum was the Yisrael Beytenu Party chairman and right-hand of Liberman from 2003-2014 and deputy minister from 2009-2014.
The prosecution opened its case against her, in the person of Economic Crimes Unit Deputy Director Meor Even Chen, with the charge that this was a unique case in a country that has witnessed widespread corruption among its public officials.
Even Chen said that in past cases, public officials were approached with bribes to approve requests, such as construction plans.
However, in this case, “it was not a question of giving an approval…the indictment…is practically like none which an Israeli court has ever seen…state funds from the budget itself were used as bribery funds…by the woman who was herself empowered by the legislature.”
In January 2018, the prosecution got its first conviction in “Case 242,” against Israeli Promoters Association CEO Irena Waldberg as part of a plea bargain.
This was a major turning point as Waldenberg pointed the finger directly at Kirschenbaum and helped the prosecution knock holes in the former top Yisrael Beytenu official’s defense.