Netanyahu’s wife offers to repay ‘stolen’ funds to close fraud case

Lawyers of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s wife Sara yesterday met with Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit and proposed that she would repay funds which she is accused of syphoning if the case against her is closed, Arab48 reported.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that Sara “would admit to having misappropriated government funds and would reimburse the state.”

According to the Israeli paper, Sara is accused of misusing 359,000 shekels ($102,000) in state funds, ordering expensive meals from restaurants and private chefs while falsely claiming that the residence did not employ a cook.

Her lawyers asked for the amount in question be recalculated, adding that $102,000 is far greater than any amount she may have used.

Read: Police have ‘sufficient evidence’ to charge Netanyahu with fraud

Sara and her husband, the Israeli prime minister, have been battling legal cases against them for over a year. Netanyahu is currently entangled in four political scandals: Case 1000 which involves allegations that the PM and his wife accepted illegal gifts from businessmen; Case 2000 which accuses Netanyahu of attempting to buy favourable newspaper coverage; Case 3000, also known as the “submarine scandal”; and Case 4000, in which a close associate of Netanyahu is suspected of providing confidential information to Israel’s largest telecoms company.