Rabbi arrested for molesting students

Jerusalem suspect detained after pupil claims abuse spanning five years

Times of Israel

A rabbi from a Jerusalem yeshiva was arrested after one of the pupils filed a complaint saying he was molested for five years, Hebrew-language media reported on Thursday.

The 19-year-old victim claimed other pupils at the religious academy were also abused by the rabbi, according to the Ynet news website.

The suspect, who denies the charges, was to be brought for an arraignment hearing before the Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court.

He was unnamed in the media reports.

Last week the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court extended the remand of a different rabbi accused of molesting two boys, 14 and 16, when he taught at a religious center located in the center of the country, the Hebrew-language Walla website reported at the time.

According to the report, it was the religious center that reported the alleged crimes to authorities. The rabbi’s attorney claimed the allegations came against a background of a legal dispute between the institute and the rabbi, which it fired a year and a half ago, and that the abuse claims were to pressure his client to drop legal proceedings against the center.