JERUSALEM — Israeli police says former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is suspected of taking bribes in a burgeoning Jerusalem corruption case.
The 63-year-old Olmert returned to Israel from Europe early on Thursday amid reports of his involvement in the case. Police confirmed on Thursday he was a suspect, after a court-issued gag order was eased.
Olmert has denied any connection.
Last week, a longtime Olmert associate and five others were arrested in the affair. Police suspect huge sums of money changed hands to promote several real-estate projects, including a large development in Jerusalem that required a radical change in zoning laws. Olmert was mayor of Jerusalem at the time.
He is currently standing trial on separate corruption charges that drove him from office last year.
