Convicted Sex Fiend Berland arrested Again ...

Rabbi Eliezer Berland, a convicted sex offender and leader of the Shuvu Banim Breslov community, was arrested Sunday morning in a police raid on his home on suspicion of fraudulent receipt and tax offenses. His wife and senior members of the Shuvu Banim community were detained for questioning. 

Following a covert investigation, police forces raided the homes of six suspected offenders. 

The investigation focused on two main issues. The first was criminal - gathering evidence and testimony against the 18-20-year Jerusalem suspects who allegedly exploited hundreds of civilians and their families by demanding tens of thousands of shekels in exchanges for blessings of healing.

The second track was economic - investigators managed to uncover a variety of alleged money laundering offenses, including tax evasion with millions of shekels. The money was purportedly laundered using dozens of bank accounts. 

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During the arrest of the rabbi, the culprits began throwing stones and other objects at police in attempt to prevent their action. Two officers were injured.

In December, six senior officials of the  community were arrested in Jerusalem  on charges of fraud and money laundering. Their homes were searched and various documents and other evidence was seized by the police, and they were brought before the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court.

The arrests them were in connection with the same alleged scheme by Berland and his associates in which he offered to bless terminally ill patients in exchange for large sums of money, in a ceremony called “redemption of the soul.”
 

An investigative report by Channel 13 in October revealed video evidence that Berland and his associates were instructing followers who were severely ill to give thousands and even tens of thousands of shekels in return for a promise that they would be healed by the rabbi.
 

The mother of a Nurit Ben-Moshe, a follower of Berland who was diagnosed with cancer and who paid NIS 20,000 for his blessing, filed a criminal complaint against him in October.
 

Berland allegedly instructed Nurit not to get chemotherapy and instead to pay for his blessing which he said would cure her.

Nurit died in September this year, and her mother accuses Berland of responsibility for her daughter’s death.
 

Berland was convicted in 2016 of two counts of indecent assault against two women, and one count of assault against the husband of one of the women he had beaten up for reporting the issue to the press.
 

In 2016, audio recordings of Berland were released by Channel 2 News in which he seemingly admits to raping one of his victims. He was not convicted for rape.
 

Berland was sentenced to 18 months in prison but served five months before being released to house arrest in April 2017, which ended in October that year.