tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309929059139673041.post3781689202960763698..comments2024-03-28T02:08:17.990+02:00Comments on Daas Torah - Issues of Jewish Identity: Speaking lashon harah about rabbis - to preserve emunas chachomimDaas Torahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07252904288544083215noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309929059139673041.post-21923851013156279012010-06-30T04:18:01.966+03:002010-06-30T04:18:01.966+03:00UOJ was the first one to publicize that he is a th...UOJ was the first one to publicize that he is a thief.<br /><br />Rabbonim were still inviting him to sing in their shuls even after his thievery became public knowledge.<br /><br />http://dnainfo.com/20100629/washington-heights-inwood/puported-rabbi-singer-gets-prison-for-stealing-from-washington-heights-woman<br /><br />MANHATTAN SUPREME COURT — A singer and purported rabbi who claimed to have the stardom of Michael Jackson in Israel was sentenced to one to three years prison on Tuesday for stealing $36,000 from a Washington Heights woman.<br /><br />Michoel Streicher, 50, scammed the money from his victim — a fellow Orthodox Jew — by promising he would invest it in a coveted Torah scroll, which he said he would acquire through his connections in Israel.<br /><br />Instead, Streicher took the money and ignored demands from the victim, Judy Burstein, and her family to return it.<br /><br />Burstein said she intended to give the Torah to her now deceased husband, who was ill and unable to leave the house to worship.<br /><br />Streicher was found guilty of grand larceny and harassment at trial. When he testified he described himself as a major music celebrity overseas.<br /><br />"It wasn't fifty thousand it was only a few — they exaggerated," Streicher allegedly said when he was arrested on Feb. 17, 2008, according to court documents.<br /><br />"I've got mafia, I've got guns. You don't want to mess with me."<br /><br />At his sentencing Tuesday, Streicher's lawyer Eric Franz, asked for a reduced sentence of only six months, with probation to follow.<br /><br />But the Manhattan Supreme Court Judge said Streicher should have to pay for the stress and agony he caused Burstein's family.<br /><br />The funds were not returned until Tuesday, when Streicher handed over a check to prosecutors in court. <br />Burstein's son, Yehuda, 34, said his mother is very relieved that the ordeal is over. <br /><br />Outside the courthouse, Franz defended Streicher's questionable status as a member of the Orthodox clergy. The lawyer said Streicher is a trained rabbi, but does not have his own congregation.Michoel Streicherhttp://dnainfo.com/20100629/washington-heights-inwood/puported-rabbi-singer-gets-prison-for-stealing-from-washington-heights-womannoreply@blogger.com