Son of late Shas leader to stand trial for corruption

State Attorney Shai Nitzan is seeking to indict Holon's Chief Rabbi Avraham Yosef, son of Shas' late spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, on corruption charges, including fraud and breach of trust. The final decision on the matter is pending a hearing the State Attorney's Office plans to hold in the coming days.

Yosef has been the chief rabbi of Holon, outside Tel Aviv, since 1998. The State Attorney's Office believes he used his power to essentially order the city's meat vendors and butcher shops to apply for their kashrut certificates through Badatz Beit Yosef, which is run by the Yosef family. The state alleges that Yosef's order, which promoted a body associated with his family over its competitors -- Badatz Edah Haredit and Badatz Landa -- constituted a conflict of interest.

Yosef's order, the state said, "meant that business owners had to use one of these institutions to apply for a kosher certificate from the Chief Rabbinate, despite the fact that prior to this order, they did not have to contend with such restrictions."

The state says that in addition, during Yosef's tenure, two employees of the Holon Rabbinate were employed as kashrut inspectors for Badatz Beit Yosef, and were paid by both. The state said Yosef knew of the two's conflict of interest, but approved their dual employment nonetheless.