http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=05/29/00&id=79749
Israeli counterfeit ring smashed in Colombia
By Nicole Krau, 05/29/2000,
Ha'aretz Police Correspondent
An Israeli suspected of masterminding a counterfeiting operation which
planned to distribute fake dollars around the world was arrested in
Colombia on Friday. The man, Itzik Richter, 55, is well known to Israeli
police and has been the target of long-term surveillance due to his links to
the underworld.
Richter was arrested in Colombia with several others, including Israeli
businessman Ofer Zismanovich, 46, of Tel Aviv, who has been living in
that country for the last year. Colombian police also suspects that Richter
and his associates were planning to import arms from Eastern Europe for
a local terrorist group.
In Israel, police arrested several of Richter's partners. David Birnbaum,
52, of Tel Aviv, and Yaron Cohen, 45, from Nahariya, were picked up on
Saturday morning. It is believed that Cohen spent two months in
Colombia late last year to assist in setting up the counterfeiting operation.
Information was passed to the Israeli police about 18 months ago about a
gang of Israelis, headed by Richter, which planned to set up dollar
counterfeiting labs in Colombia. Israeli police, in cooperation with U.S.
and Colombian agencies, began a series of surveillance operations
against the suspects in Israel and abroad, and the Colombian police
managed to "plant" an agent inside the gang.
The agent arrived in Israel during the investigation and was briefed on
Richter and his mode of operation by Israeli police.
Richter is a familiar figure to Israeli police. In 1992, he was sentenced to
five years in prison for counterfeiting dollars, and his links to drug
traffickers made him a prime surveillance target for local police.
During the briefing, Richter's links with the Cali cartel, Colombia's
notorious drug organization, were also outlined to the Colombian secret
agent. It was during this meeting that the Israeli police informed the
Colombians of plans to smuggle arms from east Europe for Colombian
guerrillas. That information raised the investigation to top priority status
for the Colombians.
An Israeli middleman, Amos Shimoni, 36, living in Colombia during the
last few years, was arrested in Panama several weeks ago, with $100,000
in counterfeit bills. Following interrogation by an Israeli police officer,
Shimoni gave important information on his relationship with the suspects
arrested during the weekend.
