Son of Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem from Shas charged with setting up drug lab

December 16, 2021   

Israel Cohen, the son of Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Zvika Cohen, has been arrested on suspicion of running a large drug lab in the center of the capital. According to a report by journalist Liran Tamari in mynet Jerusalem, the son is accused of, among other things, manufacturing, preparing and producing drugs in large quantities, which were produced in an event hall he managed. He is also accused of the offense of 'theft under special circumstances' and 'possession not for personal consumption.' According to the report, the prosecutor's office also asked the city's Magistrate's Court to declare Cohen and three other defendants in the case 'drug dealers' and to order that their property be confiscated. The state is also seeking to seize a property on Menachem Elazar Street owned by Cohen's wife, as well as credit balances and deposits in a bank account that also belongs to the wife. The court rejected the son's request for release under restrictive conditions after it was not impressed with the proposed supervisors. This morning, his defense attorney, Attorney Ariel Atari, filed a renewed request to release the son to detention at the home of his father, Zvika Cohen. According to the indictment, which was filed with the city's Magistrate's Court, Israel Cohen and his partners rented the Beit Navon event hall on HaNevi'im Street. In exchange for using the building in the city center, they undertook to pay a monthly rent of 7,371 shekels. However, very quickly, in parallel with the legitimate activity in the event hall, a drug laboratory was established in the basement of the building. They also dug an opening behind one of the drinks counters, which led to the basement floor that was used as a laboratory. According to the indictment, the lab's founders connected to the 'Electric Company' system in an attempt to prevent actual consumption from being read. Therefore, the defendants are accused of stealing 179,000 shekels using this method. The four defendants in the case have been detained since November 9. In a hearing held last week, the prosecution requested that the defendants be kept in custody until the end of the legal proceedings against them. This week, another hearing was held in court, in which Cohen requested that he be ordered released to house arrest with the use of an electronic handcuff. "He is not charged with trafficking offenses," the attorney argued. "He is the one who rented the place and is punishing for a sin. He leads a normative lifestyle and the supervisors are worthy." The prosecution opposed Cohen's release to house arrest. "This is not a young defendant who is not rooted in the world of drugs. Growing 16 kilos does not mean that 'he is not rooted in this world.'" Magistrate's Court Judge Elazar Bialin accepted the prosecution's position and rejected Cohen's request to be released under restrictive conditions. Attorney Ariel Atari, Cohen's defense attorney, told mynet Jerusalem: "The time has come to put an end to the ridiculous situation in which the State of Israel allows its citizens to consume cannabis - but does not allow it to be grown. "The use of cannabis has become almost normative, and there is no longer any room for the arrest of normative citizens like Cohen." A source close to Zvika Cohen told mynet Jerusalem that despite everything, "he hopes his son will return home soon.".