Alleged sex pest rabbi finally arrested
Israeli fugitive and alleged sex pest Rabbi Eliezer Berland has finally been nabbed after evading authorities twice.
|||Johannesburg - Israeli fugitive and alleged sex pest Rabbi Eliezer Berland has finally been detained in Joburg after evading authorities twice.
Hawks spokesman Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi confirmed that the 78-year-old was nabbed in Sandton on Thursday.
“We have been calling on him to hand himself over because he knows that we have been looking for him. We were in contact with him and he has always had an excuse not to hand himself over,” Mulaudzi said.
He explained that when the Hawks found out the rabbi was unwell and was being treated in a hospital in Sandton, they decided to pounce.
“We flooded all the hospitals in the area, found him and arrested him there. We took him to a police station in Sandton, and out of good will, took him for a check-up. It was found that he’s unwell and was re-admitted to a private hospital,” Mulaudzi said.
Berland is under police guard at a hospital in Sandton.
Mulaudzi emphasised that his re-admittance to hospital was not at the state's cost and was being paid for privately. The rabbi was arrested by the Hawks on four counts of alleged sexual assault committed in Israel.
“There is a court process we have to go through before extradition can take place.
“If all goes well with this process, there is a possibility that he will be extradited back to Israel,” Muluadzi said.
Earlier this year, the Hawks raided Berland’s hideout in a hotel in Midrand, north of Joburg, where he’d been staying since September, last year.
But he evaded them once again. Previously, he escaped capture after a high-speed car chase around Glenhazel.
Berland, who is the leader of the Shuvu Bonim Hasidic sect in Jerusalem, fled Israel in 2012 after allegations of sexual harassment were made by some of his women-followers in Israel.
He has sought refuge in several countries including Zimbabwe, Morocco, Switzerland and most recently Holland, where he managed to escape after being arrested. This is the second time he has taken shelter in South Africa.
Berland is expected to appear in the Randburg Magistrate's Court next week.
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The Star