“Looks like a formal criminal probe into the economic ties, interests and conflict of interests between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his cousin Nathan Milikowsky is inevitable,” a senior Israeli law enforcement official told Al-Monitor, speaking on the condition of anonymity. “Such a decision is not possible before the [April 9] elections, but in light of the information gathered recently, a complex and troubling picture emerges that requires thorough examination,” the official added. “Authorities in the United States might also have to investigate the case from their angle,” he concluded.

Indeed, the Federal Securities and Exchange Commission might feel the need to launch a probe into Milikowsky and Netanyahu’s business dealings. “Right now, it is unclear how Netanyahu bought SeaDrift stocks, with whose money and from whom,” said the law enforcement source. “What was the role of his cousin, who was a majority stockholder in the company, and why did Netanyahu pay a significantly lower sum than other buyers …, an absurd value compared to its revenues that year?”

In order to understand this latest affair, the fifth in which Netanyahu has become embroiled over the past two years, one has to dive into Netanyahu’s family history. His grandfather Rabbi Nathan Milikowsky emigrated from Poland to Palestine after World War I. Life was hard, and seven of his nine children left well before Israel was established in 1948. Most of them did well, largely in the steel industry, becoming wealthy. Two sons stayed on in the Holy Land. One of them, Professor Benzion Milikowsky, who went by the pen name Netanyahu, is the father of Israel’s prime minister.

According to family tradition, the wealthy brothers who moved abroad and prospered would see to the needs of the two brothers who remained in the Land of Israel and pursued academic careers. The principle was clear: Those who did well in material terms would take care of those who chose a more spiritual path in life. Indeed, the Netanyahu family received regular help from their rich relatives abroad. The senior Netanyahu would sometimes live in the United States for long periods, holding down academic posts in New York and Philadelphia and enjoying the largesse of his relatives. His son Benjamin spent large chunks of his childhood and adult life in the “land of limitless possibilities,” including studying at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.