At the time of Metuk's testimony in court, the latter had already severed his business and personal ties with Weissman, and therefore, according to Defendant 1, he was free to tell the truth about the ownership and management of Merig.
The defense also refers to the testimony of the prosecution witness Dina Leibo, who carried out office work for the defendant in his office in Rishpon, and also stated that Marig was a company owned and managed by Mario Weissman. In light of the above, the defense argues that the prosecution did not prove its claim regarding defendant 1's control of the Marig company.
The defendant does not deny that he had business relations with the Marig company and even provided it with various services. This company operated out of an office complex in Rishpon, which Mario Weissman had hired for Marig. This company was engaged in the import, trading and marketing of various products, including electrical products. After Defendant 1 decided to move to the offices of Merig in Rishpon, it was agreed that instead of paying rent for the use of the office, the defendant would provide Merig with ongoing financial services and various office services. The firm's services included answering phones, receiving mail and arranging paperwork.
At the same time, when a customer of defendant 1 encountered difficulties in marketing goods in the field of electricity, he was referred to Shlomo Metuk, in order to receive service in the marketing of the goods. Metuk used to make the sales through Merig, which was a company that was exempt from withholding tax. The fact that in some cases, the sales money of Merig was transferred to defendant 1 does not indicate the defendant's control of this company. The same sums were transferred to defendant 1 from customers who received financing services from the defendant or that he intermediated between them and the suppliers, and therefore the receipts were deposited in the possession of defendant 1, who transferred them to the bank accounts of the financing companies. Since the defendant operated out of Merig's office complex, it is no wonder that Merig's stamp was found in these offices. At a certain point, the office complex in which Merig operated, and Shlomo Metuk and Mario Weissman moved to another address in Herzliya, together with other companies, which they operated. According to the defendant, "From that point on, Uri heard no more about Marig, and as far as he was concerned, the company 'evaporated.'"