Gag Order Lifted: Full Allegations Against Lahav 433 Chief Come to Light

Israel Police Internal Affairs (Mahash) has lifted the gag order on the investigation into Lahav 433 commander Manny Benjamin, revealing the full scope of suspicions now tying Israel’s top anti-corruption officer to a widening probe in the north. The disclosure follows the shift to an open investigation in a related case led jointly by the Northern District’s central investigative unit and Mahash, which resulted in the arrest of Nazareth’s former mayor, his associates, and senior operatives in the Bakri crime organization.

According to Mahash, Benjamin is suspected of acting in a conflict of interest by maintaining undisclosed personal contact with the former mayor during an active investigation and sharing police information with him and others. Once Benjamin realized that evidence had been gathered about his conduct, investigators say he approached police officials in the north to have the case reassigned to another unit that also reported to him.

Benjamin has been questioned on suspicion of breach of trust and misuse of authority. He is currently under restrictive conditions, including a ban on contacting individuals linked to the affair. His interrogation last week lasted several hours on the day he had been expected to return to duty. Mahash has also summoned senior commanders for testimony, including the head of the Investigations and Intelligence Directorate and the commander of the anti-organized-crime directorate. A senior law enforcement source told N12 the case had been handled covertly for months and that Benjamin’s return to his post is “highly unlikely.”

The allegations come alongside an extensive overnight operation in Nazareth, where hundreds of officers, Border Police soldiers, and Prison Service teams raided compounds tied to the Bakri crime network. Police say multiple business figures and past and present municipal officials were arrested in what they describe as a major financial corruption scheme that funneled vast sums to the organization. According to investigators, Bakri operatives effectively seized control over parts of the municipality’s financial operations, coercing senior officials into facilitating payments and laundering money. The group has long been linked to extortion, threats, bid-rigging, and a series of murders stemming from turf wars in the north.

Benjamin’s attorney, Ori Korb, rejected the allegations as “baseless and embarrassing,” saying the commander’s contact with the former mayor was professional, transparent, and known to senior officers. Meetings were held openly, he said, and phone calls were never concealed. Korb added that evidence collected by Lahav 433 itself led to the mayor’s removal. He also disputed the claim that Benjamin sought to influence the investigation’s handling, calling the transfer of the file between subordinate units a routine professional decision. Linking his client to a crime group, he argued, is unjustified and harms public trust.

The investigation remains ongoing.