Report: Chabad Rabbi Aquitted On Drug Trafficking Charges

Two Chabad blogs are reporting that Rabbi Eli Hecht, a charity collector from Tzefat, Israel, was aquitted of drug trafficking charges by a Spanish court today. Hecht claimed that a another person gave him a suitcase and asked him to take it, but did not tell Hecht that the suitcase contained what turned out to be a large amount of illegal drugs.

Rabbi Eli Hecht, supports and attorneys waiting for his trial to begin in Madrid, Spain, earlier this month

This is Crown Heights.info's report:

Rabbi Eli Hecht, a Tzedaka fundraiser from Kfar Chabad, Israel who was arrested in Spain on charges of drug trafficking, was aqquited of all charges in a Madrid court today. Rabbi Hecht will return home to his family after the completion of the paperwork process.

Chabad.info's report:

Today, Friday, the court in Madrid, Spain has released the final verdict regarding R' Eli Hecht, stating that he is not guilty of the crimes attributed to him after he was caught transporting drugs without his knowledge ● Within 5 days he will be back at home in Safed, Israel ● A mass Farbrengen and Seudas Hoda'ah will take place on Shabbos in his hometown Safed.

Comments

[devorah]

The courts would never buy that excuse here. Que lastima

[seymour]

how does drugs get into people luggage

this guy the boys from japan

the question is who gave him the drugs and what did he think he was carrying

[Malka Gittel]

I congratulate his attorneys on a job well done.

[David]

Travel tips 101: Never carry luggage for anyone that you do not personally know the contents of or pack yourself. At all international airports I have visited they always ask did I pack the bags myself.

[A. Nuran]

What David said.

[Robert Wisler]

What A. Nuran said. -- Break out the Mountain Dew and vodka!

[BeenThereDoneThat]

I always tell them that my butler packed my bages.

[Maskil]

The courts would never buy that excuse here. Que lastima

Posted by: devorah | January 27, 2012 at 03:58 PM

No, devorah, but it can always be bought from them. Everything has its price. ¿Are you so naive to think no wheels were greased por allí?

[Eli]

I wouldn't jump to any conclusions. These new articles don't give enough detail of how he was "acquitted" or what the acquittal consists of. The previous chabadnik coverage of the case almost exclusively focused on his conditions of confinement or spoke of his naïveté. Yet there seemed to be no dispute he was carrying 4 grams of coke in the case. Nothing about who gave him the case, or whether that person has been detained in Costa Rica, which would seem a necessary element for his defense.
My remote understanding of Spanish criminal procedure is that the prosecutor or judge can preliminarily dismiss a case for lack of evidence, or they might have released him on the basis of a plea acceptance and time served.

[Eli]

I stand corrected. According to one account, there was a hearing with evidence about rabbis carrying things for others and someone called a hardened criminal in costa rica, although I don't understand how this fits wih past claims of his naïveté (doing a mitzvah for a dealer?)
http://shmais.com/chabad-news/latest/item/eli-hecht-waits-for-his-verdict
Still, it's a plausible defense.

[Steven]

Guilty of stupidity.

[WoolSilkCotton]

Eli, good points.

Doing a 'favor' for a wealthy donor, such as feigning ignorance of the contents of a package you're carrying for them, or otherwise acting as a mule or patsy, is probably a not uncommon practice for Chabad schluchim.

The crook sending the package takes advantage both of the Chabadnik's naiveté and the obsequiousness of Chabad schluchim who benefit from crooked donors' largesse.

I suspect the court picked up on this, and realized there were bigger fish to fry in this drug smuggling case. He probably gave them names and other useful information for further investigation, and so got himself off the hook.

[david]

Dirt bags. The guy is innocent. Case closed.

Nice that dirtbag shmarya reports this news as well. Surprising - but nice.

[charlie runkel]

shmarya must be soooooo dissapointed

[A. Nuran]

So the system works. The guy wasn't convicted by the evil goyishe "courts" of "justice" simply because he was a Jew. Think that will change the ghetto mentality one iota? Hardly.

[Proton Soup]

Eli, why do you say grams instead of kilograms?

http://matzav.com/rabbi-dunin-reports-of-eli-hechts-horrors-in-spain

[Eli]

Yes, should have been 4kg, or at least that's what the reports say. It's a lot but with the 20 to 25 kg limit for bags, I suppose it is still plausible that he didn't know it was there. Doesn't change my mind that he could have been duped.
What I haven't seen in any reports, however, is what happened to the guy whom he says gave him the bag. His defense was based on receiving this from a well known member of the community in Costa Rica. So people have his name and address and if Hecht isnt guilty, then this guy is. Where is he?

[esther kohn]

some people dont learn

[Confused]

Great news. A wonderful way to start the new week!

[TheRealJoe]

Listen I don't know Rabbi Hect personally, although I have met members of his family.
Straight up, say what you want about other cases of drugs in the frum community, but I knew from day 1 that he's innocent, in fact convicting people like him is in a sense helping the real drug dealers, by showing them that they can always use a mule, while they stay in the shadows.

[simple jew]

B"H
Baruch Hashem

Thank you Shmrya for spreading the good news.

He sounded innocent from the beginning.... thank G-d this nightmare is almost over.

he was stuck in jail for long time.... then stuck in Espana.

[adams]

no Joe, he should name the person who gave him the suitcase. Too many frumma have been caught smuggling, my view is that he was the smuggler and is acting all pious cuz he got caught.

Everyone knows not to trust anybody who gives you a auitcase.

[TheRealJoe]

@ adams I too wish I knew the man whom gave him the suitcase, however the man is clearly a well protected $$$$ mafia guy, so Hect would be signing himself a sentence worse then prison, was he to name the guy.

Hopefully the guy will get his just punishment down here or upstairs.

[Eli]

Signing a death sentence? Hello? In Costa Rica? Because he plans to go back there? Or because the dealer is so stupid he thinks that not being named is a form of mafia omertà that entitles Hecht to protection?
If so, he didn't do a good job taking the fall. His ENTIRE defense was based on accusing this person who (a) was clearly known to the community in Costa Rica, (b) was a donor, (c) was personally known to one of the witnesses, (d) has a house in CR where Hecht stayed, (e) gave him the name and address of the delivery person in Madrid (a woman), etc. He MUST have named the dealer; he practically drew a map to his house and daily routine...
And if he hadn't provided the name it would have undermined his defense.
I just don't understand why we don't see his or the Madrid courier's names in any of the reports. It's a big gap in the story.

[simple jew]

B"H

Maybe in spain they don't release details from cases like transcripts names etc

I don't for one moment doubt Hechts story.

If you do then think about concept of Dan lchaf zechus.

[yudel]

No es una lastima cabron. Trafficking in drugs through innocents is also big business. It is more than possible that a man like him who would be naive to all of this would get snared. It is not that hard if you know how to spot a mark and have been trained to do it. The Spanish court clearly got the message and understood what happened. Those of you railing on him should be ashamed. I do not like Chabad period. Can't stant it actually but justice is justice and no innocent should go to jail. Every watch the film Brokedown Palace with Claire Danes. It is all about suitcase trafficking in Thailand. Every check out the number of people world wide in jail because of suitcase trafficking.
The answer to those of you that have bitterness in your heart and lost your emumah is to look up cases and then see if your reply matches your foolish vitroil.

[rebitzman]

The answer to those of you that have bitterness in your heart and lost your emumah is to look up cases and then see if your reply matches your foolish vitroil.

You mean like this statement?

Great idea.

[Chicago sam]

Chevra, can somebody please explain to me, why is Hecht taking money from known criminals? Are other Chabad rabbis deriving financial support from the drug lords, just because they happen to be Jewish and wealthy? A man is judged by the company he keeps.

[Based on my knowledge]

Based on my unbderstanding, he was staying at the home of the guy who gave him the suitcase. When you are a beneficiary of kindness and then your host asks you, can you do me a little favor, please deliver goods to this guy, it is hard for a naive man to say no.

[adams]

well is he a known criminal?
If so then you don't take any suitcase or even stay there.
So let me amend my view.
If he is not a known criminal
still, you cannot take a suitcase for anyone.
And you have to lie knowingly to security what about that?
isn't that enough to say to this fine host,
sorry I can't lie to security no can do, against my religion. i suppose he hasn't heard of the innocent Bochrim in Japanese jails.

What is his fear oh that the host will not donate to Chabad i see.

[Proton Soup]

maybe he's smuggling for mossad

[Chicago Sam]

I agree with Adams; I think Chabad purposely looked the other way, and assumed everything is "kosher."

If I was a judge in the court, I would want to know about Hecht's history with the druglord--from Day 1. I suspect the druglord has given to Chabad in the past; why else would he stay at this man's house??

Well, the druglord made a complete "mule" out of Rabbi Eli Hecht. That's what happens when you throw caution, common sense, and ethics, out with the wind.

In Talmudic terms, this case is a little bit like shogage k'rov la'mazid.

[Yosef ben Matitya]

hecht?
related to hecht who spoke against y rabin z'l?
can't be good!

[Chicago Sam]

We were once classmates in 770; pretty bright guy, but I am surprised how foolish and stupid Eli has become over the years.

It seems that Chabad really doesn't care how it gets its money--no questions asked. Taking advantage of widows, as many shiluchim have done, is another example of how Chabad takes without any regard to the moral consequences of their actions.

Chabadniks often (but not all of them!) behave like Hassidic Leninists- the means justify the ends. This is Chabad's attitude.

Not all money is "kosher"--especially when someone obtains it through illegal means.

[Yaakov]

Chicago Sam:

Even the goyim know that "money will burn a hole in your pocket".
Now, what burns? Fire! So, we see from here that money is fire.

We learn in mesechta Berachot (22a) from R. Yehudah ben Beseira that the words of the Torah are not mekabel tumah. He learns this from Yermiyahu, "are not all my words like fire, said Hashem?" Since fire is not mekabel tumah, the words of the Torah are also.

So, if money is fire, as we showed at the beginning, it is not mekabel tumah, and so is always tahor. So you see, you shouldn't worry so much.

[Chicago Sam]

Yaakov,

If you send me a note at sender12@aol.com, I will send you a link for downloading the new book on Plato and the Talmud.