After approving a plea agreement, the Yerushalayim District Court imposed a custodial sentence on Lev Tahor cult leader Elazar Rompler, ordering him to serve 24 months behind bars, less time already spent in detention. The ruling also included suspended sentences, a fine of 10,000 shekels, and an order to pay 12,000 shekels in compensation to the victim.

In its decision, the court described the incident in stark terms, writing that “the facts detailed in the first count, which concerns the assault, are severe and chilling,” and stressing that the violence displayed especially serious characteristics.

Rompler was convicted of aggravated assault causing actual bodily harm after he struck a 10-year-old boy in front of other students within the Lev Tahor cult. The verdict noted that the attack took place publicly, in the presence of the child’s peers.

The court also found Rompler guilty of breaching a legal order by leaving Israel despite a stay of exit order and evading the proceedings. He fled the country while the case was pending.

Following his escape, Rompler was apprehended abroad and returned to Israel through an extradition process carried out by the International Department of the State Prosecution.

During sentencing submissions, the Jerusalem District Prosecutor’s Office, represented by attorney Tzur Huta, underscored the extraordinary gravity of the offense. Prosecutors pointed to the abuse of a position of authority within a closed community, the targeting of a defenseless minor, and the fact that the violence occurred in front of other children.

Jooish News

Jooish News