Last update - 00:00 05/08/2007
Police arrest ten members of alleged crime organization
By Jonathan Lis, Haaretz Correspondent
Investigators from the International Crimes Investigation Unit carried out an extensive operation on Sunday morning targeted at Rico Shirazi's alleged crime organization.
In the course of a raid carried out by the investigators in Netanya and other areas in the center of the country, ten suspects were arrested, including Shirazi himself, suspected of involvement in organized crime. The arrests followed an ongoing secret investigation.
A senior police official said that the material gathered thus far in the investigation will make it possible for the police to "bring down" Shirazi's group, which is considered one of Israel's biggest crime organizations.
The investigators say they believe they have enough evidence from the intelligence information accumulated throughout the investigation to file indictments and, eventually, for a court to convict the suspects. The evidence includes recordings and surveillance carried out in recent months.
The suspects were allegedly involved in a variety of offenses, including money laundering, illegal gambling, seizure of debtors' assets, and extortion.
Among the suspects is a lawyer who is suspected of abusing his authority and assisting the organization with fraudulent activities in the real estate sector. A substantial portion of the organization's activities were carried out through a non-profit organization called "Yad Lehayav," which translates roughly to "A hand to the debtor."
Shirazi and his associates will be brought on Sunday afternoon for a remand extension at the Petah Tikva Magistrate's Court. Police estimate that with media exposure of the arrests, additional victims of the organization's activities are likely to file complaints with the police.