Israel Police from the department’s Fraud Division on Sunday morning, 
raided a number of chareidi yeshivos in the capital and Betar Illit, with officials releasing a statement to the media that the raids are connected to alleged money laundering.
Police confiscated documents, computers and files, with the statement to the media speaking of possible “millions of NIS” involved in a fraudulent operation involving stipends for fictitious students. A number of “expensive vehicles belonging to yeshiva administrators” were also confiscated and five people were either arrested or detained for questioning.
YWN-ISRAEL will provide additional information as it becomes available.
12:02: The persons arrested in the raid of three yeshivos are reportedly affiliated with the “Zos HaBracha” non-profit organization and are alleged to have embezzled the state out of millions of NIS. They stand accused of collecting funds for 1,500 fictitious talmidim. One of the people in custody is also connected to the ongoing Chadrei Chareidim website investigation.
12:15: Police report the raids took place in talmidei torah, adding the suspects in custody allegedly gathered the names and identity number of 1,500 children who do not attend the schools and collected state funds for them as if they were students. Police stress that expensive vehicles were confiscated, including a Volvo and Audi SUV that were used by people involved in the illegal activities. And finally, one of the suspects in custody was among the main plaintiffs who told police he was targeted in the Chadrei Chareidim embezzlement scheme and not a defendant in that case.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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15 Responses
Hashem yishmor! I won’t believe the facts so quickly because there is a tendency in the Medina at least amongst the police to consider all Charedim/datim guilty until provender innocent so with hashems help we’ll wait and see.
But there is just the element of false certainties which bothers me. The non Frum will make up their minds when they start hearing the slander and “outright proofs”.
Hashem should protect us.
When you read these stories and they appear to be ubiquitous in Israel or in America, one wonders as to how long these “Chillul Hashems” can continue.
The need for money is so overwhelming, and the temptation is so great, no wonder these events occur.
Solution:
Reality check.
We can no longer foster a situation where thousands upon thousands do not work and live off the largesse of others.
Wake up call for the leaders of these commnuities- whether Chassidish or Litvish- to have their minions working and not spending all day in minyan.
#1
Hashem protect us ?
Protect yourselves.
Police yourselves.
Stop the charade that somehow stealing from the government is Halachically sanctioned.
This cuts through all areas of Haredi life- including the underground, tax evading economy,- that is pervasive in the Haredi world.
There is institutionalized fraud occuring here in all areas of Haredi life.
The Rabbis are to blame for allowing this climate to persist.
modern orthodox,
The need for money is so overwhelming, and the temptation is so great, no wonder these events occur
Solution:
Reality check.
We can no longer foster a situation where thousands upon thousands do not work and live off the largesse of others
Last I checked, the prisons for ripping off the government are 99 percent filled with working people.
Modern Orthodox may as well change his name to Conservative or Reform. I heard the same arguement expressed by a conservative “Rabbi” many years ago.
@Modern Orthodox You seem to be so bent on an agenda that you are missing the facts! REALITY is that the big tax and government cheaters and evaders are the wealthy not the poor. REALITY is that people cheat the government all the time and its not something found by the Chareidim alone. REALITY is that a person who cheats wont cheat only to make ends meat, but as long as they can. If this story is even true, then they were cheating in order to buy fancy cars, not to make ends meat. Your agenda seems to be blinding you from REALITY.
to modern orthodox- when you live accroding to torah values and spend all available time after work learning then you should feel free to comment but i am wondering do you? or perhaps you spend your time at the movies? i only ask because of the condescending language that you seem so willing to use
and who will be paying this money back…
Money, money and more money..the fraud just keeps the chilul hashem going stronger and fiercer.
Modern Orthodox may as well change his name to Conservative or Reform. I heard the same arguement expressed by a conservative “Rabbi” many years ago.
If an Israeli Policeman if when raidinga Yeshiva if he ecpects to find a female in th ebais medrash singing ona mic and of course he’ll tell you “no!.
So why would he expect to find fraud?
Indeed no frum Institution should be taking any money from the Zionists. Indeed our Tanaim of already warned us in tractate Avos, that Torah that is not accompanied with an occupation leads to the worst results.
This whole institutions of sending EVERYONE to learn in Yeshivos. And not giving ANYONE means to make a living is against our tradition. Of course they should’nt go to the Army in Israel. But it would be better if they found a way to make a living and even immigrate if they have too.
I am in the management end of the yeshiva world. It is not so easy to pull off a scheme like this. We get surprise visits semi annually from misrad hadatot. This is the procedure: as soon as they come, all doors are secure shut. no one can come in or go out. they collect all ID’s or passports which must be available to them at a moment’s notice. each bochur stands in line and gets checked off of the list they bring with them once they match the ID/passport. in order to pass the “bdika” you have to have 85% attendance – if you don’t you fail. Also, they have a list of all the bochurim who were “no shows” from last time. If one bochur is consistently a “no show” you also fail.
so 1500 absentees??????? Something doesn’t smell right!
As R’ Elyah Lopyan Zt”l would say: 99% truth is still 100% false.
There is no way that 1500 people can generate “millions of NIS”. It’s been many years since the government gave anywhere near that amount.
Thus, this article contains exaggeration. Which becomes problematic even if the rest is true and beneficial.
I live in Beitar and have heard nothing about this all day long. Furthermore, I have not been able to find any mention of this anywhere else.
YWN, where do you get your information from?
We are not being careful enough with this report. First of all, it hasn’t been proven that anyone stole anything, just alleged. Second, the source of the info and those who will investigate it are treif. Third, if anyone really took these “millions,” they may have used it for Torah purposes. And if that’s true, it wasn’t theft at all because Torah’s needs come first.