While defending Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his criminal trial, the law firm representing him received at least US$1.25 million from James Packer, the Australian billionaire whose alleged gifts to Netanyahu form part of Case 1000, The Sydney Morning Herald reported on Monday.
The report has not yet been independently confirmed.
The Herald report alleges that the money was paid through monthly wire transfers of USD 50,000 over the past two years, starting on September 23, 2024. It identifies the payments as transfers from the Citibank account of Packer’s company, Consolidated Press International, to the account of Tel Aviv law firm Hadad Roth Shenhar at Bank Mizrahi Tefahot.
The newspaper said it had not confirmed that Netanyahu benefited from the payments. A source familiar with Packer’s financial dealings told the Herald that the transfers were for work Packer did, including finding investment deals in Israel, and were unrelated to Netanyahu’s trial.
The Herald said it later requested evidence of deals or work the firm undertook, but neither Packer nor his company had responded by publication.
At the Jerusalem District Court, where hearings in the evidentiary stage are ongoing, Netanyahu’s defense attorney Amit Hadad refused to address queries on the matter.
Packer declined to comment when approached by the Herald, which reported that he did not deny the payments. Hadad did not respond to the newspaper’s questions.
Netanyahu spokesman refuses to respond amid elections
A spokesman for Netanyahu told the newspaper: “I couldn’t give a monkey’s about your questions. We are very busy. We have an election on right now.”
The report comes on the eve of Israeli elections, as Netanyahu’s criminal trial continues.
In Case 1000, Netanyahu is alleged to have received gifts from Packer and billionaire businessman Arnon Milchan. He faces a charge of fraud and breach of trust in the case. Packer is not a defendant.
The critical allegation in Case 1000 is not just that Netanyahu received gifts. Prosecutors allege the gifts were provided regularly, including in response to requests and demands, until they became a “supply line.” They also allege that Netanyahu acted in Milchan’s interests through his public positions while in a serious and continuing conflict of interest.
Those alleged interventions concerned Milchan’s US visa, a proposed extension of tax benefits for returning residents, and regulatory matters connected to a potential investment in Israeli television.
Netanyahu allegedly received approximately NIS 690,000 in gifts
According to the indictment, the gifts to Netanyahu and his wife, primarily cigars and champagne, amounted to approximately NIS 690,000. The allegations concerning Milchan cover October 2011 through December 2016, while those concerning Packer cover 2014-2016.
Specifically, the indictment alleges gifts from Packer totaling NIS 229,174 - NIS 145,577 in cigars and NIS 83,597 in champagne.
Hadas Klein, who worked for Milchan and Packer, was a central prosecution witness concerning the gifts and their delivery.
Netanyahu’s trial, which began in May 2020, concerns three cases involving alleged gifts and dealings with media owners. He faces fraud and breach-of-trust charges in all three and a bribery charge in Case 4000, concerning alleged regulatory benefits for Bezeq in exchange for intervention in Walla’s news coverage. He denies wrongdoing.