A New Twist in the Israeli Prime Minister Corruption Scandal

The storm clouds over embattled Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert turned darker on Friday, with the startling announcement that Israeli police are investigating whether he enriched himself by taking payments from multiple sources for trips overseas.

For Olmert, who has been dogged for moths by an investigation into his finances, this latest twist is likely to be a further blow to his efforts to hold onto his office. As U.S. News previously reported, he was already facing calls to resign.

The new details were made public shortly after police questioned Olmert for a third time in a burgeoning corruption scandal, according to the Associated Press. Police announced they had widened their investigation to include the funding of trips abroad made by Olmert when he was Jerusalem mayor and then a cabinet minister before he was elected prime minister in 2006. According to the new allegations, AP said, police believe Olmert illicitly took some $100,000 by deceiving multiple sources into thinking they were paying for the same trip.

Olmert has denied any wrongdoing since the corruption allegations surfaced two months ago. He has promised to resign if indicted.