Conviction Jewish institutions and contexts Other Jewish institution or hearing Berlin, Germany · 2026

Berlin: rabbi convicted of assaulting a woman he offered to counsel using claimed spiritual powers

Record class

Core record

Evidence status

Convicted

Authority role

rabbi offering religious counsel

Organization

No organization assigned

Spiritual nexus

He invoked his standing as a rabbi able to resolve family crises through claimed special powers in order to establish the counselling relationship, and the assault occurred inside the religious authority the victim had sought out for help.

Pastoral or clerical authority
Threatened spiritual consequence

Evidence structure

Proceedings

2026-01-22 · conviction and sentence

Berlin court, Germany. A Berlin court convicted a rabbi, identified in reporting only as Reuven Y. under German privacy law, of sexual assault and sexual coercion of a woman he had offered to counsel, imposing a suspended ten-month sentence with two years' probation. Reporting indicates roughly 32 women described similar experiences.

Documented coercion mechanisms

claimed rabbinical 'special powers' to resolve family problems
religious counselling relationship

Primary record

Sources

institutional reporting verdict report 'Berlin rabbi convicted of sexual assault and sexual coercion of woman he offered to counsel', Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 22 Jan. 2026.: Reports the Berlin conviction and the counselling pretext through which the rabbi obtained access to the victim.

Related record

Related cases · Jewish institutions and contexts

← Explore all cases