Eli Nir revealed as VC exec charged with sexual crimes
Eli Nir revealed as VC exec charged with sexual crimes
An indictment alleges that Nir, who until recently served as a senior investment partner for OurCrowd, used Tinder to contact women and has charged him with two counts of rape and two counts of sodomy during three incidents in 2017, 2019, and 2020 involving three women he met through the app. "The indictment in this case should not have been filed in the first place, since the evidence in the investigation points to our client's complete innocence," said Nir’s lawyers
Eli Nir, who until recently served as a senior investment partner for OurCrowd, is the venture capital industry executive facing accusations of rape and sexual offenses. Last week, Supreme Court Judge Khaled Kabub approved the publication of Nir's name today, February 7.
The indictment alleges that Nir used the Tinder app to contact women and charges him with two counts of rape and two counts of sodomy during three incidents in 2017, 2019, and 2020 involving three women he met through the app. The indictment was filed in October 2023 following a hearing.
Nir, until recently a key figure in OurCrowd, oversaw many of its investments in Israel, including with Innoviz, Arbe, Hailo, and Vayyar, according to IVC.
"OurCrowd was shocked to learn of the serious charges against Eli Nir from the media reports of the Supreme Court decision on January 30, 2024,” the firm wrote in a statement.
"Prior to that date, Eli did not disclose to our management that he was indicted, investigated by the Israel Police, or arrested several years ago as part of this investigation.
"Eli Nir previously worked as a senior investment partner for OurCrowd. At the beginning of October 2023, he requested to leave the company for personal reasons and on January 30th he ceased all activity on behalf of the company. During his tenure with us, Eli was a member of the investment committee, but was not a member of our board, nor did he play any role on the firm’s executive committee. He served on the boards of certain of our portfolio companies and as an adviser to some of our funds. He has either resigned or has been removed from all of those positions and no longer represents us in any capacity.
"Our management team takes a strong position against any improper conduct, sexual harassment, sexual crimes and in particular rape. We make great efforts to ensure that the women who work here are safe and feel safe at all times. We will be providing support to any of our employees who feel in any way threatened by this matter.
"As a company that values transparency, we oppose any effort to keep key information from the public. We respect the diligent and persistent efforts of the media to investigate these alleged acts.”
Nir's attorneys, Igal Dotan, Avigdor Feldman, and Haim Itzhaki, said: "The indictment in this case should not have been filed in the first place, since the evidence of the investigation points to our client's complete innocence… Even before the appeal was rejected to ban the publication of his name and details, he resigned from his position at the fund in order to prevent possible damage to the fund and investors."
Founded in 2013 by Jon Medved, OurCrowd has grown into a prominent high-tech investment fund, boasting over 225,000 registered investors and investments in approximately 425 companies totaling around $2.2 billion.
