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Elior Chen. (Archive)
Last update - 14:25 04/06/2008
Suspected Haredi child abuser Elior Chen turns himself in to Brazilian authorities
By Uri Blau and Yair Ettinger, Haaretz Correspondents
Tags: Elior Chen, Brazil, Jerusalem

An ultra-Orthodox rabbi suspected of orchestrating one of the worst cases of systematic child abuse in Israel has turned himself in to Brazilian authorities, it was revealed on Wednesday.

Elior Chen turned himself in following ongoing cooperation between Israeli and Brazilian police to determine his whereabouts. After his alleged crime was exposed, Chen and his family fled to Canada, ultimately making their way to Sao Paulo.

Israeli sources said Chen's extradition to Israel would be carried out soon.
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Chen's lawyer, Ariel Atari, said that his client turned himself in after reports in the Brazilian press began to surface, blaming the Jewish community for giving shelter to a child abuser.

"It's something Elior Chen couldn't live with. What caused him to turn himself in was the desire to prevent blasphemy."

Chen is considered the spiritual leader of a Jerusalem sect that was found to have abused young children, two of whom, aged 4 and 5, were hospitalized in March in critical condition.

Chen's wife, Ruth, and their four children traveled to Brazil with him, but departed last week for Belgium. Hoping to pressure Chen's wife to turn him in, Brazilian authorities had removed the children from their mother's custody and placed them with a foster family for two days, after which they were returned to their mother.

Representatives from Israel Police went Brazil to pursue Chen last week. An international warrant for his arrest was issued in April.

Chen allegedly ordered his followers to "discipline" children by beating, burning, pushing and shaking them, and tying them up as a way of "correcting" their behavior.

Chen had fled to Canada with one of his disciples after the arrest of a Jerusalem mother, apparently another of his disciples, on suspicion she severely abused her eight children at Chen's bidding. The mother was indicted for allegedly burning her toddlers, making them eat feces and locking them in a suitcase for days at a time, among other charges.

One of her children remains in a vegetative coma.


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      1.   "Rabbi" - child abuser! 10:29  |  Phil 04/06/08
      2.   The power of religion 11:17  |  SJ 04/06/08
      3.   #1 11:23  |  A.M. 04/06/08
      4.   if guilty, he should be locked up for life 11:39  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 04/06/08
      5.   Suspect Secular Child Abuser... 12:16  |  Shimon 04/06/08
      6.   #2 12:20  |  observer 04/06/08
      7.   WHAT a disgrace! According to TIME the Haredi community 12:35  |  PETER SM 04/06/08
      8.   More Secular Reporting 13:27  |  Jak Black 04/06/08
      9.   child abuser 13:30  |  Hilda 04/06/08
      10.   Life is not museum 13:54  |  Keops 04/06/08
      11.   #3 13:55  |  Shmuel 04/06/08
      12.   Suspected Haredi 14:02  |  Abe 04/06/08
      13.   Re:No 12 14:21  |  Mark 04/06/08
      14.   Haredi or Not 14:41  |  Noami 04/06/08
      15.   To 12 and 13.... 14:46  |  Ofer Maimon 04/06/08
      16.   to #5 Shimon: because of statistics. Numbers don`t lie 14:47  |  Alain 04/06/08
      17.   Religiousness DOES matter... 14:57  |  Zelda 04/06/08
      18.   Haredi 14:59  |  harry haredi 04/06/08
      19.   God as an Idol 15:06  |  AliciaYasmeen 04/06/08
      20.   #16 Prove it. 15:10  |  Jak Black 04/06/08
      21.   Child abuse to fight child abuse? 15:13  |  David Olesker 04/06/08
      22.   Some `religious` guy 15:24  |  Chaval 04/06/08
      23.   Disgusting Elior Chen 15:34  |  Chaval 04/06/08
      24.   Alain # 16 15:47  |  Chaval 04/06/08
      25.   "Fake Rabbi" 16:01  |  JP 04/06/08
      26.   # 18 well heres why 16:28  |  SJ 04/06/08
      27.   Re Shimon #5 16:34  |  Esther 04/06/08
      28.   Black Child Abuser Arrested 16:39  |  Fish 04/06/08
      29.   @16 Alain, not only orthodox Jews 16:42  |  Mark B. 04/06/08
      30.   rabbi 16:42  |  azad 04/06/08
      31.   Haaretz Talkback The Hate the relegious jews forum 17:03  |  Chareidi 04/06/08
      32.   SJ TA 17:06  |  Pamela 04/06/08
      33.   Kudos #18 17:08  |  Elior chen former Ch 04/06/08
      34.   Phil 17:11  |  Pamela 04/06/08
      35.   Haredi? No way, he is an absolute nut case!!! 17:46  |  Jewish State 04/06/08
      36.   Free rabbinical ordination from Haaretz 18:23  |  observer 04/06/08
      37.   Chareidi there no argument with you 18:58  |  Genuine Tosefta 04/06/08
      38.   secular child abuser? 19:05  |  sam 04/06/08
      39.   Answer to Observer 19:12  |  Pamela 04/06/08
      40.   Charedi NY 19:23  |  Pamela 04/06/08
      41.   Pamela 19:58  |  bar 04/06/08
      42.   Religion 20:04  |  Pat 04/06/08
      43.   Chareidi - response 20:22  |  Sar Chasm 04/06/08
      44.   Haredi, Shmaredi... 20:23  |  Pat 04/06/08
      45.   #27 Esther re Shimon 20:45  |  H 04/06/08
      46.   Chareidi Bashing 20:53  |  Howard 04/06/08
      47.   Nothing wrong with the headline 21:11  |  Pat 04/06/08
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