Newark, NJ – A Brooklyn man characterized by the FBI as an enforcer has pleaded guilty to taking part in a plan to use violence to force a Jewish man to give his wife a religious divorce.
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Sholom Shuchat pleaded guilty in federal court in Newark on Monday to traveling in interstate commerce to commit an act of violence. The crime carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence.
He was one of several men, including two rabbis, who were arrested last October.
The FBI used undercover agents to pose as a woman seeking a religious divorce and her brother who was allegedly willing to pay for the husband to be kidnapped.
Shuchat and the others allegedly drove to Edison where they thought they would encounter the husband, but instead were arrested.
Fantastic news!!
this man is a hero to many hundreds of thousands of agunos still out there.
i heard this guy was the sofer for the get…btw i dont understand whats wrong with all these guys..a man whom withholds a get from is ex wife has mental issues…essentially a rasha
Hope he gets (no pun intended) jail time but 20 years is ridiculous. A year and a day should do the trick.
We as a community need to address the issues at hand on the GET busters.
Like many other issues, we have a problem that is very real, and there is desperation to resolve it. The trouble is that the “solution” is equally problematic or worse. I cannot fault Epstein or any of the others for wanting to do this. The recalcitrant husbands are scum of the earth, and deserve to suffer. But their method was criminal, and they deserve prosecution for it. Meanwhile, we need to make serious efforts to address the processes within the community that make gittin issues complicated. There is a place for Beis Din, and often a place for court. There are ways that are halachically sound and well within the range of morality to accomplish everything. I watch rabbonim rush to issue kisvei seruv when the only means to insure paternal contact with children is through the courts, and heterim have been given. I watch men refuse to give gittin with ridiculous claims such as ransom money, concessions on child support, etc. I watch women falsely accuse their husbands of domestic violence, etc. We have much to fix. Anyone listening?
Great news. He would have gotten off with no jail time if he lived in Brooklyn. Maybe we should have our criminal trials in NJ instead of Brooklyn to keep our children safe.
5. Anonymous Says: ” I watch women falsely accuse their husbands of domestic violence, etc.”
This is a ridiculous comment. How could you know for sure they are false accusations? Were you in the room each time the domestic violence incidents took place? Are you aware how hard it is to get away with making false allegations when police question the accuser over and over so many times to Make sure these charges are true? Don’t you give enough credit to the police who are very trained in interrogations and can see when someone is lying? Don’t be so sure the domestic violence charges are false. I guess it’s safe to assume you’re male.
in regards to those that say that women dont report the abuse or waffle back & forth with whether it happened. keep in mind that these women were beaten down & tramatized. there are still in shock. most of them don’t have the strength to report. and once they do they can’t believe that it actually happened to them. I am sure that #13 can agree with this. also in regards to arrests & police reports & detectives & all that -unfortunately cops will not arrest an abuser unless there is evidence to back up the facts. also other things get in the way as well, technical issues, its not always so clear cut.