In recent days, a disturbing pattern of public deception and professional ethics violations was exposed in Semion Grafman's high-profile case. An in-depth investigation by the "Maakav" team reveals how attorneys Guy Ophir and Omer Baleli, along with their client Semion Grafman, conducted a misleading media campaign that led to the defamation of Mishel Taroni.

Our comprehensive investigation reveals that attorneys Guy Ophir and Omer Baleli spread false information to Israel's leading media outlets. They claimed that the Magistrate's Court convicted Mishel Taroni of death threats – a claim that proved completely false.

The spreading of misleading information appears to have been done deliberately and with premeditation, aiming to create public controversy, sway public opinion, humiliate Taroni, and damage his long-standing reputation and good name.

(It's worth noting that spreading false information not only harms the directly involved parties but also undermines public trust in both the judicial system and media outlets)

Leading media outlets, including Maariv, Walla, Chamal, Mako, Ice, and YNET, published the misleading news without checking the original documents. None of them bothered to review the protocols or verdict. The media blindly relied on the attorneys' statements, assuming professional ethics rules would prevent them from providing false information.

It's important to emphasize that the media's primary purpose is to provide the public with reliable and accurate information only. This duty places responsibility on every media outlet to examine things carefully and thoroughly, time and time again. However, in this case, as in many others, this requirement was not properly fulfilled.

Maariv, Walla, Chamal, Mako, Ice, and YNET – these are the media outlets that published obvious falsehoods. These media bodies, despite being supported by millions of followers, demonstrate poor professional standards and a complete lack of commitment to the most basic journalistic values.

During a hearing on December 12, Judge Anat Yahav expressed complete astonishment at the publications. "At no stage and nowhere did I mention or say that Mishel Taroni was convicted of death threats", the judge clarified. She added that she doesn't understand how attorneys Guy Ophir and Omer Baleli reached such conclusions.

I attended the legal hearing and witnessed the judge's measured look toward attorneys Guy Ophir and Omer Baleli, who spread blatant falsehoods. The judge fixed them with a stern and piercing gaze. Moreover, during the hearing, an unequivocal clarification was given: the verdict does not contain the words "threatens to murder" or "death threat" at all, and these things were not said either verbally or in writing. At this point, the judge understood the nature of the individuals she was forced to deal with.

At this stage, Judge Anat Yahav sensitively revealed from her personal experience that at the beginning of her professional career, she too was harmed by false publications and the spread of false information about her. She expressed deep identification with the difficult feeling associated with attributing false actions or statements to a person.

Ahav Cohen, Mishel Taroni's representative, presented the article printouts to the court. The judge promised to address in the sentencing the malice, poor professional standards, spread falsehoods, and the injustice caused to Taroni.

Semion Grafman, previously convicted of criminal offenses, is known publicly for his controversial statements. Recently, serious allegations against him were exposed by Kristina Somorokov (Kristina Somorokov testified to "Maakav" that Grafman raped her multiple times). Additionally, cases of non-payment to workers during his election campaign were discovered when he ran for Prime Minister.

Furthermore, Semion Grafman expressed hatred toward the religious public and declared that if given a government position, he would work to exclude them. Also, in a legal case related to Eilat Magazine (Eilat Local), his discriminatory views toward the LGBTQ community were exposed.

In general, regarding Semion Grafman, his admiration for Putin's murderous regime and the entirety of his dubious adventures, an entire book or play could be written titled "Grafman the Adventurer".

During legal proceedings, another disturbing behavior was revealed. Grafman filed a false complaint about alleged assault by Dennis Charkov, who was present at the hearing. His attorney, Baleli, rushed to file a request to bring court security. Judge Yahav, who sat across from Grafman, calmly rejected the request, saying no assault was observed.

Additionally, attorney Guy Ophir complained to the judge about my publications in "Maakav", true articles about him (for some reason claimed my articles didn't reflect the truth, which is strange). However, Judge Anat Yahav allowed my continued presence in the courtroom in my journalistic role, and clarified off the record that Mr. Dim Amor has the full right to publish articles.

From my side, I clarified to attorney Guy Ophir that if he believes my articles don't reflect the truth, he's welcome to file a lawsuit. Also, I confronted him about his lies.

His attempt to complain about my work wasn't particularly successful. While it's evident that Guy Ophir wanted to silence me, in a state of law this isn't simple at all (it's worth noting his attempt).

The public needs to be informed of another disturbing fact: attorney Guy Ophir published new video documentation, claiming that Taroni provided false information and that following the criminal complaint filed, an indictment was submitted. This claim is groundless and fundamentally flawed. The factual reality is entirely different: while a criminal complaint was filed against Mishel Taroni and Dennis Charkov, before the complaint was filed, Grafman filed a complaint with the Israel Police.

Consequently, a police investigation was opened, which has nothing to do with the criminal complaint. After comprehensive evidence collection, the Israel Police and Prosecution decided to file an indictment against Charkov only, which was eventually dismissed. However, in the video documentation published by attorney Ophir, he refrained from presenting all the facts and the complete picture as it is.

Attorney Guy Ophir and Mr. Semion Grafman tried to conduct double legal proceedings while misleading the court, aiming to burden Mr. Dennis Charkov and impose a double procedural burden on him. However, Judge Anat Yahav ordered Charkov's removal from the criminal complaint, ruling that two legal proceedings cannot be conducted simultaneously.

In examining the original legal documents, including the criminal complaint filed by Grafman through Guy Ophir's law firm, not a single mention of the word "murder" was found. Moreover, the sentence has not yet been given and the verdict itself might change – but the media has already labeled Mishel Taroni as threatening murder.

The case raises difficult questions about the Israeli justice system. How is it possible that attorneys knowingly spread false information? In a proper state of law, an attorney who loses public trust and violates ethics rules would risk losing their license. Is Israel truly a state of law?

This case exposes a deep systematic failure in overseeing attorneys' conduct and legal media in Israel. A comprehensive reform is needed in professional ethics rules and mechanisms for monitoring legal publications in the media.

My attempts to interview Semion Grafman were met with thundering silence.

Similarly, attorney Guy Ophir avoided responding and being interviewed.

צילום: תוכן ע"פ סעיף 27א'