Five suspects were arrested for allegedly taking tens of millions of shekels in public aid funds set aside to help those impacted by the war, Israel Police announced on Monday.
The suspects were identified after a joint investigation between the Northern District police and the National Insurance Institute.
The stolen funds were set to be awarded to evacuees who returned to work at least 11 days a month. Those who returned received NIS 3,000 in a monthly grant but were expected to declare their eligibility through a government site. However, it was found that in 1000s of cases, funds were being claimed without legal entitlement.
During the investigation, dozens of citizens who made a false statement were questioned – many of whom testified that other parties "hunted" potential clients by various means in order to take the grants.
The suspects
The suspected organizers of this network were named by Israel Police Deir al-Assad, Kisra Sumia, Uzir, Nazareth and Beit Jan – all of whom have now been arrested.
In total, it is believed the five individuals misappropriated tens of millions of shekels.
