The Minister of Justice, Gideon Saar, appealed to the Minister of Finance, Avigdor Lieberman, demanding that he not allow his office staff to touch the funds of the fund, the purpose of which is to fight economic crime.
A letter sent last week to Israel Today states that the forfeiture money from criminal organizations is supposed to go through the law in favor of a foundation whose job is to develop units that deal with this crime, including improving capabilities, laboratories and the like.
Most of the economic crime originates from the criminal organizations that originate in the Arab sector.
"The decision to establish a forfeiture fund in the field of economic enforcement is based on the recognition that the management of economic enforcement proceedings is on the one hand an essential component in the fight against crime, and on the other expensive and requires many resources," the justice minister wrote in his letter to the finance minister.
Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman, Photo: Ariel Hermon, Ministry of Defense
According to Saar, officials in the budget department of the Ministry of Finance "kept an eye" on this money and took advantage of a loophole in the "Prohibition of Money Laundering" law, which does not apply to funds received in plea bargains.
Since most of these cases are closed in a plea deal, the fund's coffers have remained empty since the Treasury decided to get its hands on the money, and so millions of shekels that were supposed to be directed to Arab crime are being taken elsewhere.
In his letter, the Minister of Justice demanded that the fund be reinstated, and demanded that Finance Minister Lieberman stop his officials from interpreting this interpretation of the law, which empties the fund of its content.
"Establish a mechanism of action"
"In recent years, we have witnessed that the amount of money in the forfeiture fund ... is declining, and can no longer meet all the needs of the bodies."
The Minister of Justice signs the letter as follows: "I would like you to instruct your office staff to establish a permanent mechanism according to which funds seized under the Anti-Money Laundering Law, even if they were confiscated outside this law, and which are essentially money laundering funds, will be transferred to bodies funded by the forfeiture fund. Fund objectives. "
No response was received from Minister Lieberman's office until the date of publication of the article.