-Caveat Lector-
from:
http://www.smh.com.au/news/0010/14/national/national1.html
Click Here: <A
HREF="http://www.smh.com.au/news/0010/14/national/national1.html">Jail not
kosher for three in $42m laundering sc�</A>
-----
NATIONAL
Jail not kosher for three in $42m laundering scheme
Three members of an ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, who admitted involvement
in a $42 million international money-laundering scheme, have escaped going to
jail mainly because of their religious beliefs.
The head of the family, Nachum Goldberg, 58, who masterminded the racket, was
jailed for five years and ordered to serve a minimum non-parole term of 2
years.
But his wife Rita, 56, and sons Napthali, 36, and Hershel, 34, were freed on
suspended sentences, with Victorian County Court judge Michael Strong saying
prison for them would be "extraordinarily difficult".
Judge Strong said few members of the public would have any understanding of
the rigours of the "Adass strain of ultra-Orthodox Judaism".
He was satisfied the Goldbergs were genuinely devout in their beliefs in a
sect which banned television, radio, cinema, alcohol and tobacco and
newspapers other than certain Jewish publications.
All four Goldbergs had pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the
Commonwealth.
"I am convinced that prison for a Jew of this level or orthodoxy would be
extraordinarily difficult," Judge Strong said.
"Delivery of kosher food to the jail and concerns about its contamination
would be a constant issue - and absolutely vital for the prisoner."
The jail would not be able to provide for the observance of many Orthodox
requirements for daily living. Ultra-Orthodox Jewish prisoners would be a
prime target for "discrimination and abuse or worse by other prisoners
because of their unusual appearance".
The same considerations applied to Naphtali and Hershel Goldberg.
He sentenced Rita Goldberg to 15 months, Napthali Goldberg to 12 months and
Hershel Goldberg to nine months, all suspended.
Judge Strong said all three had played relatively minor roles in the scheme.
Nachum Goldberg had been in complete control of the enterprise.
Judge Strong said that while it was impossible to determine the amount of tax
evaded, it was likely to have exceeded $20 million.
He said the principal offenders had not come before the court. Judge Strong
said the fraud in which the Goldbergs conspired was committed not by them but
by the tax evaders themselves whom the Goldbergs refused to identify. The
Goldbergs' "commission" earned from the money-laundering had been at least
$800,000.
The scheme Nachum Goldberg operated masqueraded as a conduit for charitable
funds to Israel, said the judge.
False documents and a sprinkling of legitimate charitable cheques maintained
the charade.
"When the investigators tried to follow the money trail they hit a brick wall
in the form of the refusal of the Israeli Government or the Israel banks to
co-operate," the judge said.
Judge Strong sentenced the Goldbergs on June 21, but suppressed reporting of
the sentences because disclosure of certain information in the sentencing
remarks could have aborted another unrelated trial.
AAP
Copyright � 2000. The Sydney Morning Herald
All rights reserved.
-----
Aloha, He'Ping,
Om, Shalom, Salaam.
Em Hotep, Peace Be,
All My Relations.
Omnia Bona Bonis,
Adieu, Adios, Aloha.
Amen.
Roads End
<A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A>
DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
========================================================================
Archives Available at:
http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html
<A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html">Archives of
[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A>
http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
<A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A>
========================================================================
To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Om
