Last update - 00:00 04/12/2007
Alleged crime boss Abutbul convicted for aiding buying of arms
By Jonathan Lis, Haaretz Correspondent and Haaretz Service
Jerusalem District Court on Tuesday convicted alleged organized crime boss Asi Abutbul of being an accessory to a weapons deal.
The court also convicted Eli Naim (nicknamed "the Magician"), one of the reputed crime chiefs in the Jerusalem area, of conspiring to commit a crime, and of illegally purchasing weapons.
The judgment will be given at a later date.
Eight other people were also convicted over arms dealing charges, all of them members of Abutbul and Naim's organizations.
The affair began at the beginning of 2006, when Jerusalem police stopped a car driven by two of Naim's men at the entrance to the city. A search of the vehicle revealed an Uzi sub-machine gun, magazines and silencers. One of the men found in the car was enlisted as a state's witness in the case.
After collecting a large amount of material during the course of their investigation, police decided to arrest the ten main suspects in the affair: Abutbul and three of his men, Naim and five of his.
Police suspected that the Abutbul and Naim collaborated in order to settle scores with rival groups in the capital.
During the arrest operation, police discovered a hidden weapons cache in an apartment belonging to one of Abutbul's suspected foot soldiers that included some three kilograms of RDX explosive material.
The case will be remembered for an incident that took place between Abutbul and Judge Hana Ben-Ami. The alleged crime boss was ejected from the courtroom after he shouted at the judge. He later told reporters "she will pay the price."
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