Online Gambling Arrests in Israel Need Clarification
Published: Monday, September 14, 2009 Online-Casinos.com
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported recently that three individuals have been detained on charges of operating an online gambling establishment. The arrests took place in the town of Lod, on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.
Judge Esther Nachlieli-Khayat is in the process of hearing the case with arguments presented by lawyers for the defence, suggesting that the actions by the defendants are not illegal in Israel. Attorney Sasi Gez told the court, "The company in question has licenses," adding, "Everything is public and visible."
The police have said that this particular online casino operation was committing some of its activity in Israel, which would be a violation of current laws in the country. The defence argued that even though Israelis are barred from gambling, servers and portals can exist legally in Israel.
Asi Vaknin is considered the main suspect, with Naftali Goldman and Yonatan Grimberg also being detained by the International and Serious Crimes division of the police. All of them are suspected of money laundering, and Vaknin may also face charges of making threats. They are free on bail for now as the judge has remanded the case in order to obtain further evidence.
The newspaper also reported that Mr. Vaknin had been questioned for several hours at the police offices in Lod and that Vaknin refused to say anything without a lawyer present. During the preliminary hearing at the Rishon Letzion Magistrate's Court the attorneys for the defence asked to see some form of proof that the business the men were conducting was different from other internet gaming sites. Gez and co-attorney Sharon Nahari, asked the police" Weren't you in a hurry to make arrests?" The police responded that they were in the initial stages of the investigation. Nahari said that as long as Israeli gamblers are blocked from a gambling Web site, and the site is managed abroad, operating such a site is not a crime.
The judge said that legal questions involved in this case, "spanned the globe" and needed clarification before the case can proceed.
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