Israeli rabbi charged with sex crimes to be in custody until end of trial
Judge says Rabbi Berland poses a high risk of fleeing the country, just as he did in 2012
An Israeli judge has extended the remand of Rabbi Eliezer Berland, accused of sexual offenses, until the end of his trial, calling him a flight risk, according to the Walla news site.
Judge Joya Skappa-Shapiro said that Rabbi Berland was a flight risk and that releasing him could increase the chance of obstruction of justice. She cited the fact that he previously left Israel when he knew he was being investigated and was on the run for three years before being extradited.
Berland, 79, was accused in 2012 of sexual abuse of a number of his female followers, including a 15-year-old girl.
Given that Berland is a prominent rabbi in the Breslov sect and founder of the Shuvu Banim yeshiva in Jerusalem's Old City, the court was likely concerned that his release would enable him to increase pressure on the complainants to withdraw their claims.
Judge Skappa-Shapiro noted that the rabbi is a "charismatic figure with the ability to influence those around him".
Regarding his supporters' claims that the judge should be lenient because of the rabbi's health, she pointed out that his alleged health problems in 2012 did not prevent him from fleeing the country.
Berland repeatedly asked the court to release him to house arrest.
Berland was arrested in Amsterdam in 2014, but after a court ruled in July 2015 that he would be extradited to Israel, he fled the continent, apparently using a false passport.
After fleeing Israel, he spent time in the United States, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Zimbabwe, and Morocco before setting down in South Africa. Local police tried to arrest him several times, according to Walla, but he managed to avoid them every time.
He was arrested in June in South Africa, after which he was extradited to Israel.