{"id":8724,"date":"2023-06-29T14:38:30","date_gmt":"2023-06-29T13:38:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=8724"},"modified":"2023-06-29T14:47:29","modified_gmt":"2023-06-29T13:47:29","slug":"australian-prosecutor-claims-former-israeli-principal-faked-mental-illness-to-evade-extradition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/asia\/asia-pacific\/australian-news\/australian-prosecutor-claims-former-israeli-principal-faked-mental-illness-to-evade-extradition\/2023\/06\/29\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Australian Prosecutor Claims Former Israeli Principal Faked Mental Illness to Evade Extradition"},"content":{"rendered":"
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CANBERRA,<\/span> Australia<\/span> (AP) By Dr Majid Khan<\/span>\u00a0\u2014<\/span> Malka<\/span> Leifer,<\/span> a<\/span> former<\/span> principal<\/span> of<\/span> an<\/span> Australian<\/span> Jewish<\/span> school,<\/span> has<\/span> been<\/span> accused<\/span> of<\/span> pretending<\/span> to<\/span> be<\/span> mentally<\/span> ill<\/span> for<\/span> seven<\/span> years<\/span> to<\/span> avoid<\/span> extradition<\/span> on<\/span> child<\/span> sex<\/span> abuse<\/span> charges,<\/span> according<\/span> to<\/span> a<\/span> prosecutor’s<\/span> statement<\/span> on<\/span> Thursday.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\n<\/span>Leifer<\/span> fought<\/span> her<\/span> extradition<\/span> from<\/span> Jerusalem<\/span> courts<\/span> from<\/span> 2014<\/span> to<\/span> 2021<\/span> before<\/span> being<\/span> flown<\/span> from<\/span> Israel<\/span> to<\/span> Australia<\/span> with<\/span> her<\/span> ankles<\/span> and<\/span> wrists<\/span> shackled.<\/span>
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\n<\/span>Appearing<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> Victoria<\/span> state<\/span> County<\/span> Court<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> second<\/span> day<\/span> of<\/span> her<\/span> sentencing<\/span> hearing,<\/span> Leifer<\/span> was<\/span> previously<\/span> convicted<\/span> in<\/span> April<\/span> for<\/span> sexually<\/span> abusing<\/span> two<\/span> students<\/span> between<\/span> 2003<\/span> and<\/span> 2007<\/span> while<\/span> serving<\/span> as<\/span> the<\/span> principal<\/span> of<\/span> Melbourne’s<\/span> ultra-Orthodox<\/span> Adass<\/span> Israel<\/span> School<\/span> for<\/span> girls.<\/span>
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\n<\/span>In<\/span> addition<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> ongoing<\/span> legal<\/span> proceedings,<\/span> here<\/span> are<\/span> some<\/span> other<\/span> noteworthy<\/span> news<\/span> items:<\/span>
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\n<\/span>A<\/span> Palestinian<\/span> family<\/span> faces<\/span> eviction<\/span> from<\/span> their<\/span> Jerusalem<\/span> home<\/span> as<\/span> a<\/span> lengthy<\/span> legal<\/span> battle<\/span> comes<\/span> to<\/span> an<\/span> end.<\/span><\/div>\n

\n<\/span>The<\/span> shrinking<\/span> Armenian<\/span> community<\/span> in<\/span> Jerusalem’s<\/span> contested<\/span> Old<\/span> City<\/span> expresses<\/span> concerns<\/span> over<\/span> displacement<\/span> following<\/span> a<\/span> land<\/span> deal.<\/span> An<\/span> Israeli<\/span> woman<\/span> who<\/span> was<\/span> badly<\/span> injured<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> 2001<\/span> suicide<\/span> bombing<\/span> in<\/span> Jerusalem<\/span> has<\/span> died<\/span> after<\/span> being<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> coma<\/span> for<\/span> 22<\/span> years.<\/span>
\n<\/span>Jerusalem’s<\/span> Tower<\/span> of<\/span> David<\/span> Museum<\/span> reopens<\/span> after<\/span> three<\/span> years<\/span> of<\/span> renovations.<\/span>
\n<\/span>Prosecutor<\/span> Justin<\/span> Lewis<\/span> told<\/span> Judge<\/span> Mark<\/span> Gamble<\/span> that<\/span> Leifer’s<\/span> actions<\/span> deliberately<\/span> obstructed<\/span> and<\/span> delayed<\/span> extradition<\/span> proceedings,<\/span> and<\/span> that<\/span> his<\/span> time<\/span> spent<\/span> in<\/span> detention<\/span> and<\/span> under<\/span> house<\/span> arrest<\/span> in<\/span> Israel<\/span> could<\/span> result<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> sentence.<\/span>
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\n<\/span>The<\/span> Jerusalem<\/span> District<\/span> Court<\/span> ruled<\/span> that<\/span> Leifer<\/span> was<\/span> fit<\/span> to<\/span> stand<\/span> trial<\/span> and<\/span> pretended<\/span> to<\/span> be<\/span> mentally<\/span> ill<\/span> to<\/span> avoid<\/span> extradition,<\/span> Lewis<\/span> said.<\/span> Three<\/span> Israeli<\/span> Supreme<\/span> Court<\/span> judges<\/span> unanimously<\/span> agreed<\/span> that<\/span> she<\/span> could<\/span> be<\/span> prosecuted.<\/span> Several<\/span> psychiatrists<\/span> employed<\/span> by<\/span> the<\/span> Jerusalem<\/span> District<\/span> Psychiatrist<\/span> concluded<\/span> that<\/span> Leifer<\/span> did<\/span> not<\/span> suffer<\/span> from<\/span> mental<\/span> illness,<\/span> but<\/span> rather<\/span> had<\/span> faked<\/span> it<\/span> to<\/span> avoid<\/span> extradition.<\/span> A<\/span> panel<\/span> of<\/span> experts<\/span> appointed<\/span> by<\/span> the<\/span> Tel<\/span> Aviv<\/span> District<\/span> Psychiatrist<\/span> also<\/span> unanimously<\/span> declared<\/span> her<\/span> mentally<\/span> fit<\/span> to<\/span> stand<\/span> trial,<\/span> pretending<\/span> she<\/span> was<\/span> dysfunctional<\/span> and<\/span> unable<\/span> to<\/span> comprehend<\/span> her<\/span> situation.<\/span> I<\/span> confirmed<\/span> that<\/span> I<\/span> did.<\/span>
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\n<\/span>“Three<\/span> panels<\/span> of<\/span> psychiatrists<\/span> concluded<\/span> that<\/span> the<\/span> defendant<\/span> feigned<\/span> insanity<\/span> under<\/span> circumstances<\/span> in<\/span> which<\/span> the<\/span> insanity<\/span> is<\/span> essentially<\/span> a<\/span> form<\/span> of<\/span> allergy<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> trial<\/span> itself,”<\/span> said<\/span> Lewis.<\/span> Defendant’s<\/span> conduct<\/span> prolongs<\/span> the<\/span> trial.\u201d<\/span> It<\/span> was<\/span> for<\/span> that<\/span> very<\/span> purpose.<\/span>
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\n<\/span>The<\/span> sentencing<\/span> hearing<\/span> has<\/span> been<\/span> postponed<\/span> to<\/span> a<\/span> third<\/span> day,<\/span> but<\/span> a<\/span> date<\/span> has<\/span> not<\/span> yet<\/span> been<\/span> set.<\/span> Gamble<\/span> said<\/span> he<\/span> had<\/span> not<\/span> yet<\/span> considered<\/span> documents<\/span> submitted<\/span> by<\/span> both<\/span> sides,<\/span> including<\/span> Israeli<\/span> court<\/span> records.<\/span> He<\/span> was<\/span> also<\/span> waiting<\/span> for<\/span> an<\/span> affidavit<\/span> from<\/span> Leifer’s<\/span> lawyer<\/span> regarding<\/span> her<\/span> domestic<\/span> detention<\/span> conditions<\/span> in<\/span> Israel.<\/span>
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\n<\/span>During<\/span> the<\/span> legal<\/span> battle,<\/span> Leifer<\/span> spent<\/span> 608<\/span> days<\/span> in<\/span> domestic<\/span> detention<\/span> and<\/span> 51<\/span> days<\/span> in<\/span> Israeli<\/span> detention.<\/span> The<\/span> extradition<\/span> process<\/span> strained<\/span> relations<\/span> between<\/span> the<\/span> Australian<\/span> and<\/span> Israeli<\/span> governments<\/span> and<\/span> created<\/span> tensions<\/span> within<\/span> the<\/span> Australian<\/span> Jewish<\/span> community.<\/span>
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\n<\/span>A<\/span> native<\/span> of<\/span> Tel<\/span> Aviv,<\/span> Leifer<\/span> came<\/span> to<\/span> Australia<\/span> in<\/span> 2000<\/span> as<\/span> the<\/span> school’s<\/span> religious<\/span> leader<\/span> and<\/span> became<\/span> principal<\/span> in<\/span> 2001.<\/span> She<\/span> returned<\/span> to<\/span> Israel<\/span> in<\/span> 2008<\/span> when<\/span> allegations<\/span> against<\/span> her<\/span> were<\/span> first<\/span> raised.<\/span> Sisters<\/span> Dassi<\/span> Ehrlich<\/span> and<\/span> Ellie<\/span> Sapper,<\/span> who<\/span> were<\/span> sexually<\/span> abused<\/span> by<\/span> Leifer,<\/span> spoke<\/span> in<\/span> court<\/span> on<\/span> Wednesday<\/span> about<\/span> their<\/span> painful<\/span> experiences.<\/span> They<\/span> commented<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> lasting<\/span> effects<\/span> abuse<\/span> had<\/span> on<\/span> their<\/span> ability<\/span> to<\/span> trust.<\/span>
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\n<\/span>Leifer<\/span> is<\/span> currently<\/span> incarcerated<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> high-security<\/span> women’s<\/span> prison<\/span> in<\/span> Melbourne,<\/span> and<\/span> we<\/span> followed<\/span> her<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> video<\/span> link.<\/span> She<\/span> has<\/span> been<\/span> convicted<\/span> of<\/span> multiple<\/span> charges,<\/span> including<\/span> rape,<\/span> child<\/span> sexual<\/span> penetration,<\/span> indecent<\/span> assault<\/span> and<\/span> child<\/span> molestation,<\/span> and<\/span> faces<\/span> a<\/span> possible<\/span> sentence<\/span> of<\/span> five<\/span> to<\/span> 25<\/span> years<\/span> in<\/span> prison.<\/span> There<\/span> are<\/span> no<\/span> minimum<\/span> penalties<\/span> for<\/span> these<\/span> crimes.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) By Dr Majid Khan\u00a0\u2014 Malka Leifer, a former principal of an Australian Jewish school, has been accused of pretending to be mentally ill for seven years to avoid extradition on child sex abuse charges, according to a prosecutor’s statement on Thursday. Leifer fought her extradition from Jerusalem courts from 2014 to 2021 […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8725,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[1566,1567,6490],"tags":[2151,6868,7108,7109,7110,7111,7112,7113,7114,7115],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/ausprincpl.webp","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8724"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8724"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8724\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8727,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8724\/revisions\/8727"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8725"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8724"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8724"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8724"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}