Tuesday, July 25, 2006
'RABBI' ROUSERS
Two Orthodox Jewish men have come forward to say they were molested by a Brooklyn counselor who was indicted in the 1980s for sexually abusing kids but skipped to Israel before he could be prosecuted.
Now they want the Brooklyn district attorney to revive efforts to get Avrohom Mondrowitz shipped back for trial.
"It's outrageous that the DA has allowed this to slip," Mark Weiss, who is now 39, told The Post.
The pair's stories are strikingly similar to those detailed in the indictment against Mondrowitz, which grew out of a case involving other children.
Both newly revealed victims were troubled kids in their early teens whose parents sent them for counseling.
"I remember [Mondrowitz] had this sporty car . . . As a naive kid, I was amazed at how cool this dude was," Weiss said.
Once Mondrowitz, a self-proclaimed rabbi, won his trust, things grew sinister.
"He was so damn smooth," Weiss said. "Everything was my decision. 'Do you want to sleep in the back of my house, where it is scary? Or do you think you want to be with me, where you'll be more comfortable?'
"Then began the whole touching thing. There was some real nasty stuff."
The other victim, who asked not to be identified, started seeing Mondrowitz in early 1984.
"One day, I was sitting opposite him. He began to sit alongside of me and stick his hands down my pants," said the man.
Retired Detective Salvator Catalfumo said the investigation "began with an anonymous caller who said there was a rabbi living on the street molesting children.
"It was very difficult pursing this case," he recalled. "The Hasidic community wanted no part of this. We were told that if a Hasidic kid was molested, no parent would allow their daughter to [marry him]."
Still, Catalfumo, his partner, Patricia Kehoe, and the head of the DA's sex-crimes unit, Barbara Neuman, were able to secure an indictment in 1985. But before he could be arrested, Mondrowitz fled to Israel.
Then-Brooklyn DA Elizabeth Holtzman tried for years to have him sent back, but America's treaty with Israel at the time did not recognize sodomy as an extraditable offense.
In 1988, the treaty was changed, but Holtzman soon left office, to be replaced by Charles Hynes, and the case went cold.
Michael Lesher, who represents both new victims, blamed Hynes' inaction on "a lack of political will."
But Rhonnie Jaus, now head of the sex-crimes unit, denied this, saying her hands are tired because the new treaty does not apply retroactively. As for the new victims, the statute of limitations precludes prosecution.
"I'm not sure what we can do," Jaus said. "We have always been interested in this case. There is a warrant out there. We are ready, willing and able to try him."
http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/rabbi_rousers_regionalnews_philip_messing.htm
Two Orthodox Jewish men have come forward to say they were molested by a Brooklyn counselor who was indicted in the 1980s for sexually abusing kids but skipped to Israel before he could be prosecuted.
Now they want the Brooklyn district attorney to revive efforts to get Avrohom Mondrowitz shipped back for trial.
"It's outrageous that the DA has allowed this to slip," Mark Weiss, who is now 39, told The Post.
The pair's stories are strikingly similar to those detailed in the indictment against Mondrowitz, which grew out of a case involving other children.
Both newly revealed victims were troubled kids in their early teens whose parents sent them for counseling.
"I remember [Mondrowitz] had this sporty car . . . As a naive kid, I was amazed at how cool this dude was," Weiss said.
Once Mondrowitz, a self-proclaimed rabbi, won his trust, things grew sinister.
"He was so damn smooth," Weiss said. "Everything was my decision. 'Do you want to sleep in the back of my house, where it is scary? Or do you think you want to be with me, where you'll be more comfortable?'
"Then began the whole touching thing. There was some real nasty stuff."
The other victim, who asked not to be identified, started seeing Mondrowitz in early 1984.
"One day, I was sitting opposite him. He began to sit alongside of me and stick his hands down my pants," said the man.
Retired Detective Salvator Catalfumo said the investigation "began with an anonymous caller who said there was a rabbi living on the street molesting children.
"It was very difficult pursing this case," he recalled. "The Hasidic community wanted no part of this. We were told that if a Hasidic kid was molested, no parent would allow their daughter to [marry him]."
Still, Catalfumo, his partner, Patricia Kehoe, and the head of the DA's sex-crimes unit, Barbara Neuman, were able to secure an indictment in 1985. But before he could be arrested, Mondrowitz fled to Israel.
Then-Brooklyn DA Elizabeth Holtzman tried for years to have him sent back, but America's treaty with Israel at the time did not recognize sodomy as an extraditable offense.
In 1988, the treaty was changed, but Holtzman soon left office, to be replaced by Charles Hynes, and the case went cold.
Michael Lesher, who represents both new victims, blamed Hynes' inaction on "a lack of political will."
But Rhonnie Jaus, now head of the sex-crimes unit, denied this, saying her hands are tired because the new treaty does not apply retroactively. As for the new victims, the statute of limitations precludes prosecution.
"I'm not sure what we can do," Jaus said. "We have always been interested in this case. There is a warrant out there. We are ready, willing and able to try him."
http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/rabbi_rousers_regionalnews_philip_messing.htm
Comments:
Post a Comment
