Rabbi Deri’s Plea Deal Endorsed by Court

The plea deal which the state prosecution had reached with Shas leader Rabbi Arye Deri was endorsed Tuesday by the Yerushalayim Magistrate’s Court Judge Shmuel Herbst.

Rabbi Deri will remain the head of Shas, and can run for the next Knesset. The court noted that the NIS 180,000 fine is aside from any tax payments Rabbi Deri may still be obligated to refund.

The judge said he was bound to respect the plea deal by the High Court of Justice precedent.

Last week, Rabbi Deri stood before Herbst and confessed to the amended indictment. He said, “I accept full responsibility … no one forced me.” Deri emphasized that he respected the police and the prosecution through the process which lasted several years and included many fabrications against him which are not part of the conviction.

“I have left the Knesset and leave the mission which they granted me… I struggled with that decision a lot,” he said.

Rabbi Deri’s defense lawyer Navot Tel Tzur added that Deri had suffered for several years through a long investigation and that the High Court had effectively already approved the deal.