Channel 2 New reports that businessman Michael (Miki) Ganor is saying that Advocate David Shimron was a full partner in the deal for the Israeli navy's purchase of submarines from Germany, and would have received 20% of the commission designated for Ganor.
One of the key points in the investigation is the relations between Ganor, who represented Germany shipyards company ThyssenKrupp, and Shimron. Shimron has repeatedly stated that his relations with Ganor were lawyer-client relations, and that he received legal fees from Ganor. Channel 2 today reported that he was to have received a fifth of the commission that Ganor was to have received from the German corporation, and that more than ordinary legal advice was involved. Ganor was to have received tens of millions of euros, meaning that Shimron would have received millions.
Shimron commented on the affair and the suspicions against him to Channel 2 News last week, saying, "At no stage did the prime minister hear anything whatsover from me that I was representing Ganor, and there was no reason why he should have heard." In the interview, Shimron did not conceal that he had made a number of mistakes in the affair, and attributed them to Ganor himself. "In retrospect, given the circumstances as they have emerged, Ganor is describing himself as an 'arch-criminal,' and I didn't discover this; on the contrary," Shimron claimed. "Up until right now, I had the impression that I was dealing with a serious and honest person - a reputable businessman behaving ethically."
"It was unpleasant, but I tell you - what I'm telling sounds ridiculous, but it's the truth - I greatly prefer it to being constantly crucified in the press and being unable to respond," Shimron said, referring to his arrest and the publication of his name as a suspect. "It's very difficult to deal with, and you can never win. In a fair and serious investigation, you can tell the truth, and eventually, in the vast majority of cases, the truth is what counts."
Despite the suspicions and developments in the affair, Shimron says he is not worried. "A person doesn't enjoy such a wave of reports. In this area, it's something that's very hard for me to deal with, because I can't reveal things as they are now emerging," he adds. "I'm not worried about the facts of the case. I'm worried about the process; I'm not worried about my involvement or the final result." Shimron also made it clear that he knew that Ganor planned on signing a state's witness agreement, and that the process had begun even before Shimron had traveled abroad after being released from house arrest.
Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on July 31, 2017
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