Quantcast

Rabbi Found Guilty of Sexually Abusing Teen

03032010rabbi.jpg
Rabbi Baruch Lebovits, courtesy FailedMessiah

The Borough Park rabbi/travel agent accused in hundreds of incidents of sexual abuse was convicted yesterday of molesting a 16-year-old student. Baruch Lebovits could be sentenced to 32 years in jail, after being found guilty on eight counts. "I understand that there are a significant number of Jewish holidays coming up,” said the judge. “And I am sorry." The young victim testified that in 2004 Lebovits offered to let him drive his car, then unzipped his fly and performed oral sex on him. Among the rabbi’s other alleged victims is a young Hasidic man who committed suicide on his honeymoon, by jumping from the seventh story of a hotel.

Last week the victim—who’s since left the ultra-Orthodox community—said that after being abused by Rabbi Lebovits, he’s fallen prey to heroin and other substances. The defense attacked him as an unreliable addict, and insists he was trying to blackmail the powerful community leader. "We’re extremely disappointed," said lawyer Arthur Aidala of the guilty verdict. "We were hoping that the jury was going to see things differently...Mr. Lebovits still maintains his innocence." Friends and relatives gasped at the ruling, but at least one person was pleased. "Thank God, justice was served," said the father of the abused boy, according to the Daily News.

Lebovits was acquitted on two other counts, reports the Post, but still faces charges in two more molestation cases, that could earn him another eight years behind bars.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

Comments [rss]

  • LB

    Well hopefully he gets sent to regular jail and not Jew Jail ! You know, Home in there apartments with all those damn bars on every fuckin window ! Lol Seriously Every window in a jew building has bars on the windows up to the top floor !

  • benny

    why does everybody so easily believe everything they read. ya, sure people do bad things and there are some sick f**ks out there. but reading all these comments, its ridiculous.

  • Ph

    The guy diddled little kids, whats so fucking ridiculous?



    I'm actually surprised this guy didn't get on a midnight plane to Israel before the authorities caught up with him.

  • laisla

    This.

  • l3iodeez

    Ultra-orthodox religious types and child abuse seem to go hand in hand wherever you look.



    Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Moonies, Mormons, Scientologists, its all the same. Every religious group



    Religion IS child abuse as far as I'm concerned.



    Please don't lie to your kids. Ever.

  • Tricksta

    Riiiiiiiight. Because no other religion has ever had a problem with pedophilia.

    p.s. A simple Google search could tell you David Letterman is not Jewish, you loser.

  • Gilbert

    Letterman did not have sex with underage girls, at least not that we know yet.

  • Gotham Extremist

    Correct, Letter is not even being close to Gold or Silver or Green.

  • newport27

    roman polansky, neil goldschmidt, david letterman, eliot spitzer, etc. etc. it's no news that jews have noted, unique traits of sexual perversion and obscenity. It's clear when I look at SOME (not all, but many) of my jewish male friends.. some of the most sexually perverted and obscene people I've known. I do wonder if their religion or culture has had any influence on this - perhaps the general lack of respect they have for non-jews plays a part in how they deal with women sexual partners as well. I'm no prude and I love women but I consider myself to have more "normal" sexual tendencies; theirs was on a different level. In fact, several of them began showing signs of perhaps mild pedophilia when we were in college (age 21-22), when they would brag about how "hot" or "bangable" certain 15, 16 yr old high school girls that they picked up somewhere (at the mall or on the streets mostly) were, and even had sex with several of them, while I cringed at the thought; girls that young were just too innocent to be seen as sexual subjects. God knows how many vulnerable girls must've lost their virginity to these kind of scum, that seem to be popping up on the news every other day.

  • gtraindelay

    I don't think David Letterman is even Jewish...

  • Antisemitism - ur doin it right!

  • l3iodeez

    Woah. Hitting the crazy sauce a little heavy this morning, huh?

  • evbo

    Wow. You've really figured it all out, haven't you.

  • NannyState

    He just wanted to rebbe one out.

  • blink

    Here's hoping his cell mate is a skinhead.

  • BettyDavis

    While on his honeymoon ?

  • BettyDavis

    One of these "victims" committed suicide because a rabbi gave him a blow job ?

  • laisla

    Sexual assault can have devastating consequences.

  • Gwinny

    That guy looks like the dude who tried to kiss me on the W. 4th Street subway platform on Memorial Day about 2 years ago.



    However, I'm female, and it seems he is more into boys, so it probably isn't actually him.

  • Snoopy

    I know that guy. I bought my first digital camera from him at B&H.

  • farleft

    Are you sure it wasn't Adorama?

  • Snoopy

    You might be right. But then again there was a camera shop on the southeast corner of Sixth Avenue opposite the old Limelight place.



    They are getting more and more like the Chinese people where it's hard to tell them apart.

  • Gotham Extremist

    Holy fuckin A, you are right! He's the one who sold me my Epson printer!

  • Gotham Extremist

    Gay Rabbi......... is this new?

  • tsk_tsk_tsk

    there's an important distinction you're missing here, and it's really pretty offensive.



    a grown man who molests children is not gay. a grown man, even if he molests boys, is not gay. he's a pedophile. i give you the benefit of the doubt that you didn't intend to conflate the two things, but it comes off wrong. know what i mean?

  • JenChungsBaby

    He's a gay pedophile.

  • hunter.blatherer

    Technically, an ephebophile.

  • Rocknrope

    I learned that from Different Strokes when the bike shop owner rubbed Dudley.

  • ur doing it rong

    a pederast to be even more specific

  • wonderchimp5

    He isn't gay. He's Rabbi-sexual.

  • freddynyc

    Is it appropriate here to call him a filthy Jew?

  • Splicer

    I don't understand the "holidays" remark by the judge -- is that meant to be sarcastic? If not, who cares that there are holidays coming up. Why not say, "I know you'll miss opening day of the next Star Trek film and I'm sorry for that".

  • tsk_tsk_tsk

    SERIOUSLY WTF... Since when do judges apologize to predators like this for sending them to jail? Unbelievable...

  • SighR

    I was thinking the same thing!!! She could have at least added "I'm sorry that you won't be able to show boys your car on those holidays"

  • Snoopy

    Now who would have thought the judge was Jewish?

  • FelixtheCat & Christine Quinn'

    Judge Patricia DiMango

  • Snoopy

    I guess he will be passovered for the holidays.

  • Splicer

    +1 for the remark

  • wonderchimp5

    they wanted to Rush ashana him into jail

  • valeriob

    They should have Purim in jail a long time ago.

  • Splicer

    You get a +1 as well.

  • hotstepper

    no comment from our resident angry semites?

  • hunter.blatherer

    Ok. I'm glad that after 30 years of credible allegations against child molesting rabbis, the wall created by political connections and the community's overriding desire to protect its image may be crumbling.



    Happy now?

  • wingedearth

    Filthy pervert.

  • JenChungsBaby

    Those beards will give you itchy balls.

  • evbo

    Not true. It didn't make my balls itch. Oh wait ... maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that ...

  • laisla

    His lawyer said, ""We were hoping that the jury was going to see things differently.."



    Because he was hoping the jury could be bought off? Because the jury should also be ok with being complicit in abusive situations?

  • Trilby16

    @Snoopy- the too-small hat look is a popular one in that world, and you are not the first to notice it.



    Anyway, this is a shanda for the Jews.

  • Snoopy

    I guess in some ways it could make you look taller.

  • Clarice City

    ...or fatter. FYI, The upturned brim model features storage for his cellphones and keys to his van.

  • Rocknrope

    I wonder if the brim is sharpened.

  • laisla

    Hmmm, hundreds of accusations, a suicide victim, yet his family is shocked? If only they'd stop pretending the abuse is not happening. They are just as bad.

  • Snoopy

    "I understand that there are a significant number of Jewish holidays coming up,” Of course there are. They have more holidays than the ancient Romans did.



    BTW. Isn't the hat he's wearing a bit too small for his head, or is that the new ultra-Orthodox look?

  • Rocknrope

    Among the rabbi’s other alleged victims is a young Hasidic man who committed suicide on his honeymoon.



    WTF. That is just messed up.

  • Global Wombat

    ...I suddenly have a hankering for some good ol' Hebrew National.

  • Global Wombat

    And with my luck it'll come back out looking like Gothamist's current frontpage.

  • virgilstarkwell

    oy.

  • hotstepper

    gross.

blog comments powered by Disqus

send a tip

tips@gothamist.com