Former Israeli Minister Yaakov Ritzmann Convicted of Obstruction of Justice in Extradition Case

An Israeli court on Monday gave a former health minister a suspended sentence and fined him for obstructing justice in connection with a protracted extradition case against former teacher Malka Leifer, who was accused of sexually abusing a student in Australia. I handed it over.

Yaakov Ritzmann, a former health minister and longtime ally of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, resigned from parliament earlier this year after striking a plea bargain with prosecutors. He was accused of pressuring ministry officials to change his psychiatric evaluation in order to make it appear that Leifer was unfit to stand trial.

Leifer was extradited to Australia in January 2021 after a six-year legal battle that strained relations between the two countries and angered the Australian Jewish community. The trial is scheduled to start this month.

Ritzmann was health minister early in the coronavirus pandemic, but stepped down in April 2020 in the face of public uproar over his handling of the crisis. He was indicted on fraud and breach of trust charges earlier this year, but pleaded guilty to breach of trust charges related to the Rafer case.

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At a hearing on Monday, the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court upheld the plea bargain and sentenced Ritzmann to eight months’ probation and a $1,300 fine.

He and Leifer are members of the country’s insular ultra-Orthodox Jewish community. Last year, then Attorney General Avichai Mandelblitt said Ritzmann used his position “to advance his personal interests.”

As part of the plea bargain, prosecutors have dropped charges against Ritzmann for using his influence to prevent a friend’s deli from closing due to health concerns.

The Movement for Israel’s Quality Government said the court’s acceptance of a “generous and shameful” plea bargain undermined public confidence and the ability of law enforcement to meet its obligations.