Neve-Orenstein Affair: Former Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked Gave Testimony to Police

Former Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked gave open testimony this morning at the YAH (Fraud Investigation Unit) at Lahav 433 of the Israel Police, in the "Neve-Orenstein" affair, in which former Israel Bar Association chair Adv. Efi Neve and former president of the Tel Aviv District Court, Judge Eitan Orenstein, are suspected.

During their interrogation, the police attributed to Neve and Orenstein suspicions of committing bribery, fraud, and breach of trust. They were not arrested at any stage of the investigation, but were released to their homes after the interrogation under restrictive conditions. Orenstein and Neve were previously interrogated at YAH in May 2024 and are suspected of maintaining a "quid pro quo" relationship.

According to the suspicion, Neve promoted the appointment of Orenstein to the position of president of the Tel Aviv District Court in the Judicial Selection Committee, where the Bar Association holds two seats. Shaked, as Minister of Justice, headed the committee at that time and maintained a close alliance of interests with Neve regarding judicial appointments.

The investigation, opened after the exposure of recordings by the "Haaretz" newspaper, is being overseen by the Tax and Economics Prosecution. The 2016 recordings suggest that Orenstein, seeking the Bar Association's support for his candidacy, agreed to "re-engineer" the court's torts department to align with the business interests of Neve's private law firm.

Investigators also examined claims that Orenstein complied with Neve's request to remove Judge Dalia Ganot from her position due to her unpopularity among tort lawyers. In one recording, Neve told Orenstein that the Association would support his candidacy if he removed her. After Ganot announced her retirement, Orenstein told Neve: "Efi, I paid the debt, if so." Neve replied: "No, I will find you a new one, what do you think, my dear."

Additionally, recordings previously aired on Channel 12 revealed that Shaked initially preferred Judge Yeshayahu Schneller for the position but shifted her support to Orenstein due to pressure from Neve. In the recordings, Shaked is heard saying: "No chance in the world that I would appoint him and not Schneller after the material I received from the search committee." Neve responded: "I know that I owe you."