The State Attorney's Office asked the court on Tuesday to impose a minimum sentence of one year for Ehud Olmert. Photo: Maxine Dovere.

JNS.org – Former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert faced a Jerusalem District Court sentencing hearing on Tuesday over his conviction in the Morris Talansky case, and pleaded with the court to consider his long-standing public contribution, as well as his personal suffering over the past few years, when rendering his sentence.

Olmert was convicted in March 2015 in the case, which focused on payoffs made to him between 1993 and 2002 by Talansky, an American businessman. The court overturned his 2012 acquittal on appeal. He was found guilty of fraud, breach of trust, and receiving illicit benefits under aggravated circumstances.

The State Attorney’s Office argued Tuesday that the gravity of the conviction warranted actual jail time, asking the court to impose a minimum sentence of one year on the former prime minister.

Israel’s Penal Code classifies fraud and breach of trust as respective felonies punishable by up to three years in prison. Receiving illicit benefits under aggravated circumstances is punishable by up to five years in jail.

Olmert is already facing a six-year prison sentence over his conviction in the Holyland case, in which he was found guilty of having received bribes to facilitate the construction of the Holyland housing project in Jerusalem a decade ago.