Public Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev on Thursday called on Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit to order an investigation into allegations of sexual pandering at Gilboa Prison in northern Israel.
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The move came after the governmental commission of inquiry investigating the Sept. 6 escape from the maximum-security facility said it would not look into the matter, as it had already been investigated in 2017 and the case was closed.
Testifying before the commission on Wednesday, Gilboa Prison Commander Freddy Ben Shitrit detailed the lacking security and the various measures taken to appease security prisoners held in the facility, among them the alleged pandering of newly conscripted female wardens he claimed were used to gratify security prisoners' sexual desires.
Police Commissioner Yaakov Shabtai informed Barlev on Wednesday that he was looking into the matter.
In a letter to Mendelblit, the minister said he "urges an investigation into these allegations as well as into the decision by the State Attorney's Office to close the case.
"Commander Freddy Ben Shitrit's account during his testimony over the actions allegedly involving female wardens are shocking and sickening."
Several lawmakers called for the formation of a parliamentary panel to investigate "the distorted relationship" between wardens and security prisoners at Gilboa," Walla news reported.
Public outcry over the fact that the pandering case had been closed was immediate, with women's groups condemning the "cover-up" and demanding the attorney general launch a new investigation into the matter.
Naamat women's organization Chairwoman Hagit Peer called the commission's decision outrageous.
In a letter to Shabtai, she said that "the investigation in the case of what appears to be serious suspicions that security prisoners sexually harassed prison guards at Gilboa Prison should be reopened.
"This matter is especially serious in light of the fact that Ben Shitrit was a senior member of the IPS even when the shocking affair became public, and that he testified to them under oath.
"Needless to say, if there is anything to Ben Shitrit's testimony, then not only does this serious misconduct amount to criminal offenses but it was allegedly known to the IPS.
"This is doubly grave because this is an organization that is part of the law enforcement system. This conduct, beyond being an alleged serious offense, causes a serious crisis of confidence between the public and law enforcement."
The Movement for Quality Government in Israel also called on Barlev and Mendelblit to investigate the case.
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