Jerusalem – The oldest son of incapacitated Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was sentenced Tuesday to nine months in prison for illegal fund-raising during his father’s 1999 primary campaign.
Despite calls for lenience following the elder Sharon’s devastating stroke last month, the judge called the case against Omri Sharon a “political swamp” that “must be dried up.”
However, Sharon, 41, will not have to serve his sentence immediately because of the Israeli leader’s grave medical condition.
The younger Sharon oversaw parts of the campaign and fund- raising activities for his father’s victory in the 1999 primary in the Likud Party.
Prosecutors claimed he received more than $1.3 million from groups in Israel and overseas for his father’s campaign, amounts that far exceeded legal fund-raising limits.
The primary victory helped propel Ariel Sharon to election as prime minister in early 2001 and re-election two years later. His son served as a Likud lawmaker during that time. The elder Sharon was not indicted.
Under a deal with prosecutors, Omri Sharon pleaded guilty in November to falsifying corporate documents, perjury and violating party funding laws.
In exchange, prosecutors dropped charges of fraud and breach of trust but demanded imprisonment on the other counts. The charges carried a maximum of five years in prison.
Omri Sharon waived his parliamentary immunity to face the charges and resigned his parliamentary seat in January ahead of sentencing.
In her ruling, Judge Edna Beckenstein rejected the younger Sharon’s appeals for leniency, made in presentencing proceedings in recent weeks.
