JERUSALEM (AP) – Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon’s eldest son pleaded guilty yesterday to charges he acted illegally when fund-raising for his father’s 1999 election campaign, his attorney said.

Omri Sharon and his brother, Gilad, helped their father sweep a 1999 primary in the Likud Party, overseeing parts of the campaign and the fund-raising activities.

Omri Sharon, a member of Israel’s parliament, admitted to all the charges against him, but is demanding a light sentence, his attorney, Dan Sheinman, told Israel Radio.

Sharon admitted to charges he falsified corporate documents, perjury and violating the party funding law. Under a plea deal, prosecutors dropped more serious charges of fraud and breach of trust.

But the state was insisting Sharon serve a prison sentence. The charges carry a maximum of five years in prison, but the actual jail sentence is expected to be much lighter.

The campaign law in 1999 allowed politicians to collect just 800,000 shekels (US$169,000, euro144,530) for party primaries, an amount that Sheinman said was unrealistic. Omri Sharon collected about 6 million shekels (US$1.3 million, euro1.1 million) at the time.

The law has never been enforced, and character witnesses will testify that Omri Sharon is an upstanding public figure, Sheinman said.

“All of these things have great significance regarding the punishment, not regarding the actual violation of the law. We admit the violations … he (Omri Sharon) takes full responsibility for this,” Sheinman said.” Ariel Sharon’s two terms as prime minister have been marred by scandals over shady campaign financing and real estate deals, but the prime minister himself has escaped indictment.