Report: Olmert Likely to be Charged in Carmia Scandal

(IsraelNN.com) A report Friday said that the special investigative team examining the "Carmia scandal," in which Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has been accused of trading political favors for a discount on the purchase of a house, has concluded that there is "no other option than to investigate the Prime Minister with the aim of presenting an indictment" in the matter.

The police investigative presented its case several months ago before State Prosecutor Eran Shendar, who last week forwarded the case to Attorney General Menachem Mazuz with the recommendation that an official criminal investigation be opened against Olmert. Mazuz is said to agree with Shendar's stance. Also in favor of pursuing criminal charges in the case is State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss. In a meeting with Lindentrauss last week, Mazuz reportedly expressed the opinion that he, too, believed that a criminal investigation would eventually have to be opened against the Prime Minister.

The scandal was first reported by journalist Yoav Yitzchak, who has also prompted the investigation of several other scandals currently riveting the Olmert government, including that of suspended Finance Minister Avraham Hirschson on the mass embezzlement of funds from the National Labor Federation, and another Olmert scandal involving illicit assistance Olmert gave to friends who sought to purchase shares in Bank Leumi being sold by the government when he was Minister of Trade, Industry and Labor under Sharon.