The avrech who comments under the name of "Important" - who contributed the valuable guest post explaining How do we know weberman is guilty - just added another important comment to his original post. I am making it a separate guest post because it is important in its own right. He was responding to a comment from "Rabbi". I have no idea of who "Rabbi" is or the veracity of his comment - however the response from "Important" is valid. I have personally known him for many years as an ish emes. It would be helpful to reread the original post How do we know weberman is guilty
Rabbi wrote: I got Information more than 5 years ago that Weberman sexually abused many of the girls that were sent to him for counseling.
Why victims will not come forward? shiduchim, shiduchim, shiduchim, status, status, status. satmar has the money and the power and they will destroy any girl and her family that will dare to come forward, just to protect the name Satmar. You should only know what Satmar did to the family of this girl that did come forward, they destroyed that family.
With some info I have, it becomes clear that Satmar knows that weberman is guilty.How reckless is it when they knew that weberman is 'oiver' on isur 'yichud' and they continued to send girls to him, where they just stupid? or simply reckless?
If Satmar do not support him, would mean that hundreds of girls were abused with their recklessness.
Dont forge; about 30 years ago when everyone found out that their meet ‘nikur’ was no good and should not be eaten. A ruv in satmar that also knew that the meet should not be eaten, screamed out loud "yoichly anuvim veyisbooee" to protect the name satmar the whole world should eat treifah, and or be sexually abused. shame shame Satmar
Important responded: I don't know what your information is and I wonder if you even tried to do anything with the credible information you had. (If it was as credible as you present it to be.) It hurts to hear that he might have been able to be stopped earlier and that so many victims could have been saved and new ones avoided.
I do know that the DA addressed part of your point though to some degree in his cross examination of Weberman on the stand. After establishing that Weberman is one of the only if not the only person in all of Satmar who was respected and well received in both warring Satmar camps the DA asked and Weberman admitted that he had been the driver for Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum for two years. The DA then asked rather rhetorically "And isn't it true that you know a lot of things about a lot of people in both camps from when you were so close with the previous rebbe and had so much access to so much confidential information?" Weberman shrugged and smiled sheepishly as his cheeks reddened and answered something along the lines of "I don't think so".
The DA then went on to show which Weberman admitted to that he was even sent a number of "clients" for "counselling" by the Vaad HaTznius of Monroe. The DA posited that his special status was a major factor in why he was sent this business. Weberman feebly disagreed and said that it was simply because they thought he was a good counselor. (Weberman also denied the existence of a Vaad HaTznius in Williamsburg. He claimed that the Monroe vaad tried a few times to do some things in Williamburg but that was the extent of any such actions in Williamsburg.) However, his main clientele was from the Satmar community and school in Williamsburg which belongs to the other Satmar camp.
The DA also easily showed beyond a question that there was monetary gain for the girls school in sending Weberman clients and tried to show that the same was true for those in Monroe as well. Quite a few rackets and dishonest dealings the DA discovered in this story. Much more than actually came to the fore in court. This was clear from conversations I had with the DA during the trial.
So yes, there seems to be a lot more that went on and is going on behind the scenes that we don't know the entire truth about. Who knows how many other sinister aspects to this sordid tale we will likely never know anything about? We won't even know if it was important to know.
I do know that the DA addressed part of your point though to some degree in his cross examination of Weberman on the stand. After establishing that Weberman is one of the only if not the only person in all of Satmar who was respected and well received in both warring Satmar camps the DA asked and Weberman admitted that he had been the driver for Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum for two years. The DA then asked rather rhetorically "And isn't it true that you know a lot of things about a lot of people in both camps from when you were so close with the previous rebbe and had so much access to so much confidential information?" Weberman shrugged and smiled sheepishly as his cheeks reddened and answered something along the lines of "I don't think so".
The DA then went on to show which Weberman admitted to that he was even sent a number of "clients" for "counselling" by the Vaad HaTznius of Monroe. The DA posited that his special status was a major factor in why he was sent this business. Weberman feebly disagreed and said that it was simply because they thought he was a good counselor. (Weberman also denied the existence of a Vaad HaTznius in Williamsburg. He claimed that the Monroe vaad tried a few times to do some things in Williamburg but that was the extent of any such actions in Williamsburg.) However, his main clientele was from the Satmar community and school in Williamsburg which belongs to the other Satmar camp.
The DA also easily showed beyond a question that there was monetary gain for the girls school in sending Weberman clients and tried to show that the same was true for those in Monroe as well. Quite a few rackets and dishonest dealings the DA discovered in this story. Much more than actually came to the fore in court. This was clear from conversations I had with the DA during the trial.
So yes, there seems to be a lot more that went on and is going on behind the scenes that we don't know the entire truth about. Who knows how many other sinister aspects to this sordid tale we will likely never know anything about? We won't even know if it was important to know.
Uva l'tziyon goel
Weberman was of course committing perjury on the stand when he denied the existence of a vaad hatznius in Williamsburg. Everyone knows it exists and is headed by Yosef Duvid Krauss. This was documented by Hella Winston (http://www.thejewishweek.com/news/breaking-news/trial-exposes-shadowy-chasidic-modesty-committees). Moreover, as I asserted in March 2011 on frum follies, the vaads of different neighborhoods collaborate with each other in spite of the fights at other levels.
ReplyDeleteFor over a year I hesitated to say it, but the truth must be faced, they knew of Weberman's evil proclivities and still sent him new clients. In effect the schools and the vaad pimped their own girls to Weberman, with the added cruel twist that parents were forced to pay to have their own children sent into znus. (http://wp.me/pFbfD-K4)
Mamash Sodom
As each day goes by i am more convinced something serious stinks with this Weberman case.When it all started many people were saying what a pervert he is to abuse a minor.But by now,forget about it the more i read what disgusting thing he did and with dozens of other women some even claim hundreds of women the more im convinced he was either framed or grossly exaggerated.This guy must be a genius to have time to figure out all those nasty things he is accused of doing.
ReplyDeleteEvery other person with a mighty pen has dozens of stories what a monster Weberman is.Wherever you read something about this case i read "me too my neighbor told me that his cousins sisters neighbor was also abused by Weberman.I mean are we this crazy that we believe everything people say about a person?
How low have we stooped to even think that it can be true that Satmar pimped their own girls to Weberman? we shouldn't blame it on the claimer that he must be a disturbed person to make such an accusation. It is our fault that our own fellow Jews can throw something like this out.We must find help for such a person,who knows were it can lead him.
To make a claim like nuchem rosenberg that the principle of Satmar sleeps with school girls,again,is not his fault.Its our fault we must have sinned alot to even think all those stories perhaps can be true.
Seems like all those who have old Cheshbonos with Satmar found an opportunity for payback time and all in the name of "protecting children".Satmar had much more harder times then this one and will sweat this one through too.In the meantime Satmar goes on with their daily chesed etc they don't need to be ashamed of anyone and need no guidance from any activist.
Can you name one productive thing that Weberman ever did in his life?
DeleteThis is what he did. He took money from people, built a special room in his house with a triple locked door, and had young troubled girls over for wild parties. Yes, he is that sick.
The fact (if it is a fact) that so many people know someone abused by Weberman is probably not a result of multiple grudge-inspired slanders. More likely it is a result of more gossip than the community would like to admit. "The girl my sister knows," "the girl my cousin knows" and "the girl my neighbor knows" may be one and the same person. Unless someone has made a list of all the names of people known or believed to be victims (which is highly unlikely to happen), there will be no way of knowing whether, say, two hundred alleged victims claimed to be known by someone in the community represent ten, twenty or fifty individuals. That they would represent two hundred individual victims is unlikely.
ReplyDeletePearl Engelman made a list with eight names as of 6 months ago. It is probably larger by now. I have learned of additional cases since then. I am not inside Satmar. Any of us involved in this area know the many reasons most victims never come forward. Weberman's history of molesting children precedes his career as a vaad therapist. He was voracious. So yes, I would guesstimate a hundred to several hundred victims.
ReplyDeleteLet me just make this mathematical observation about reporting rates. It is well established that very few crimes are reported all the time or even almost all the time. Abuse is known to be seriously under-reported. The Short statutes of limitations in the Metro NYC area, the center of ultra orthodox life in America have an additional impact on reporting.
Now add in the impact of the extraordinary pressures within these communities to not report.
Nobody can accurately estimate the percentage of under reporting in the chasidic world.
however I am amazed about what becomes apparent in the few cases where someone is convicted. in Lebowitz's case he cruised every nigh in his car picking up kids. He also dropped by various shuls in BP and offered kids rides. This went on for almost 40 years.
In Munkatch I have been told that the euphemism for being gay was "taking a car ride in Lebovits' car. " In several cases with which I am familiar the one witness who came forward were proxies for 10-100 others who did not come forward. I would almost say that in the ultra orthodox world the odds are excellent you will not be prosecuted if you can stay under 50 victims.
As I posted today on FaceBook,
I talked to a middle aged man in Williamsburg being badly mistreated by the powers that be. He tells me, "I am embarrassed to admit this, but a 17 year old girl had to show me I do not have to be afraid of these thugs any more."
He is planning to do some things (all legal) which will make these corrupt thugs sorry they messed with him.
I expect more like him to come forward.