Witness against Rabbi Berland reveals the night he tried to sneak a glimpse of the rabbi studying - and caught a sight that shook his faith.
The central witness against Rabbi Eliezer Berland, the fugitive head of the Shuvu Banim sect who was finally arrested in Johannesburg, South Africa two months ago, has spoken out on shocking details of the sexual abuse case against Berland.
Berland fled from Israel in 2012 after several women as well as a 15-year-old girl laid charges of sexual assault against him. He evaded capture in the US, Switzerland, Morocco and Zimbabwe and managed to avoid extradition from Holland, before being finally arrested in South Africa in April - now he faces extradition to Israel to stand trial.
Central witness Itay Nachman Shalom, formerly a member of Shuvu Banim, exposed his testimony against Berland to Walla on Wednesday, and spoke about the persecution he faces from the sect.
"They crushed us from all sides," said Shalom. "We underwent a private Holocaust and our only hope is upturned to He who Dwells on High. Our tears fell like water but there is no despair. We will fight for the truth - even at the cost of our lives."
"We will not rest and we will not be silent. Not from threats and not from blows. Whoever harms us - that's a great mitzvah for us," he said.
Shalom was one of the charismatic rabbi's most devoted followers, and was a member of the adoring youths who followed Berland everywhere.
He would wait for the rabbi for hours outside of his home in Beitar Illit, but one night he recalls climbing on top of the drainpipe outside of the house to try and sneak a glimpse of Berland praying and studying Torah.
To his horror, he instead saw the rabbi naked "bending forward over a female student and moving upwards and downwards."
The sight shook him and brought him to a great crisis of faith. "I told myself either he is the most righteous or he is the most evil," Shalom said.