Rubashkin Launches Australian Fundraising Campaign With Major Chabad Endorsement

Former Agriprocessors VP Sholom Rubashkin's "pidyon shvuyim fund" has launched an Australian fundraising effort. Rubashkin is serving a 27-year prison sentence for bank fraud and related crimes and has exhausted all appeals save one. Meanwhile, as was reported Friday, $18 million dollars illegally taken (in simpler terms, looted) from Agriprocessors while it was insolvent by Sholom Rubashkin and put into Chabad charities – one that Rubashkin himself controlled – has still not been recovered, leaving creditors – including poor workers – without restitution.

Related Post: $18 Million Allegedly Looted From Agriprocessors By Rubashkin And Chabad.

Related articles

Chabad Charities That Allegedly Laundered Millions Of Dollars For Agriprocessors Must Repay Only Thousands

Agriprocessors' Trustee's Attorney Tries To Quash Chabad Alleged Money Laundering Story

Rubashkin Fundraising Continues

Rubashkin Family Fundraising Email

Comments

[Lo K'darkah]

When they call on people to: "take part in the Pidyon Shvuyim case to secure the release of..." they make it sound as though the US Govt - like a medieval warlord - is holding this man at ransom, and it is only the want of funds that stands between the captive and his freedom. But this is not really a representation of the truth. Surely, they should be saying: "Please contribute towards a legal fund that will employ lawyers and buy influence in AN ATTEMPT to secure his release from imprisonment by the US justice system."

[Steven]

I think everyone agrees 27 years is too long. If people want to try to get him out earlier by contributing their own money then no-one should be criticizing that.

[Who Pellee]

Lo K'darkah, you are absolutely right. Rubashkin was convicted on the evidence, which was overwhelming and exposed a culture of fraud at Agri. No system is perfect but the cries by Orthodoxy of antisemitism and bias directed at the judge and the Feds set American Jewry back decades because ultimately all of these farfrumpte yiddin like Lipschitz defended a guilty man. Rule number one is never defend a defenseless position, and rule number two is once you pull the race card, you are conceding the merits of the case.

I wish the man no ill will, but every dollar donated to his release (halachah lmaiseh dictates this is not pidyon shvuyim. Zerah Lvatala, yes, pidyon shvuyim, no) is another dollar whirling down the wasted drains of bogus charities out there playing on people's emotions.

[Sarek]

"Looted" is such an unpleasant word. May I suggest, "reallocated funds that were not mine by pocketing them offshore in order to show my love for Hashem" ?

[put a square into a hole]

The $18 million dollar questionis:

Who comes first a a anti-semite that runs a web site out of his moms basement, or SMR a man that asked his relitive Sholom Duchman from colell chabad to hold some(18 mil) money for him for a rainy day?

TO David!
Did you ever think that there is more then 1 David that comments on FM?

[MM]

"TO David!
Did you ever think that there is more then 1 David that comments on FM?"

Dear Square, see Rule #3:

3. Do not use anyone else's name or alias.

So, according to the rules, the person who first used the screen name David is the one and only legitimate David on this site. All other persons need to choose a different handle, even if they really are named David.

[Seraphya Berrin]

Someone should tell Danby that the ACLU et al. haven't supported this "2255" motion.

[Kushmere]

This comment is for those who want the truth and the facts as they are, not for bashers or malcontents on either side of the issue. The reason that they settled was simple. These monies were gemachs - loans. So every time Rubashkin paid a loan of $50,000.00 they added it to the total. What you don'r see or what is not reported are the loans that Colel Chabad and Zeilingold lent. Joe Scharek (sp.) knows this and saw this therefore he settled. These are the facts. Take it or leave it.
[Scott - Shmarya can probably verify this (if he can muster some (intelectual?) honesty.....]

YTS

[eli r]

Pidyon Shevuim is not meant for paying ransom for some unfortunate Jew languishing innocently in the basement cell of some medieval warlord.
It is the same mitzvah to help ANY Jew guilty or not, to be even ONE ay less in the control of any secular jail. If appeal would help him get out of jail ONE DAY earlier, we (those who wish) are obligated to help him
Reading some of the vile here, I'd think that SMR owes you money. If he does, let me know. I'll raise the funds to pay you.
Otherwise, I don't see why he is to be considered a worse Jew than any other Jew, especially the readers of this blog, and the owner.

[Joe Field]

Posted by: Kushmere | May 07, 2013 at 09:53 AM

Are you claiming that the government only accounted for one side of the ledger; they did not use double-entry? I don’t believe your claim; because during the sentencing, SMR’s lawyers raised every plausible argument to lower the amount of the loss, thereby reducing the level were the sentencing guidelines would fall.

[Joe Field]

Reading some of the vile here, I'd think that SMR owes you money. If he does, let me know. I'll raise the funds to pay you.
Posted by: eli r | May 07, 2013 at 09:57 AM

For starters how about the bank that he defrauded of 25 million dollars, when can we expect you to make good on your declaration that you will pay any moneys due.

[Isa]

Dear Kangaroos:

CONTRIBUTE all you can!!

Better your money goes into this rat hole so it doesn't do something else!

Sell your car, sell your house! sell everything. go bankrupt!

[Kushmere]

Joe,

The bank (which was the basis of the fraud trial) and the bankruptcy are totally separate. The Colel Chabad and Zeilingold loans were not part of what you are referring to, hence the settlement. (The trial did discuss money that was exchanged for "goods" fraudulently. This is different. Colel Chabad never got "goods". They initiated the transaction (hence a loan) - not payment for goods not shipped. Again if you want to be vile and emotional we have nothing to discuss. I just present the fact (I am in the know.... just not authorized to speak....).

Shmarya will probably be able to verify...
your choice to believe or not.... just the facts please.

[Joe Field]

Posted by: Kushmere | May 07, 2013 at 11:09 AM

I really don’t know if you are an idiot or not. Nevertheless, I have this perception that you fail to use your brains. If someone drains a company of 18 million dollars and then they cannot payback a loan to the bank and go bankrupted the bankruptcy trustee has the fiduciary responsibly to claw back the ill-gotten funds.

The bottom line is that Agriprocessors was not able to payback its loan against the receivables and the reason is self-evident that the company was drained by its owners, why is irrelevant. An owner cannot just loot his own company, if he cannot pay back to its creditor’s any outstanding loans.

Bottom line, let's not forget your generous offer, to pay any entity that suffered any lose, when can we expect you to write a check?

[Abracadabra]

Kushmere - Of the 18-million, 11-million went to a "charity" that SMR was in charge of. So, I assume you are talking about 7-million of charity that SMR gave to Collel Chabad and the other charity when his company was falling apart, and when he couldn't pay the health insurance that he withheld payment from on his employee's paychecks, and which his employees were counting on, and while he claimed that he didn't have the money to repay the bank on the loan.

So, that 7-million is what you are claiming went to charitable "Gamachs." For those not familiar, a Gamach is where the charity lends money interest-free to an individual, who then repays the interest-free loan over time. (Gamach loans are almost always secured by someone else who signs on it, other than the one borrowing the money.) Since this was done 5 years ago, by now the loans should have been paid back in full. Or did the charities themselves re-use the funds that were repaid on the gamach loans, instead of paying them back to the Agriprocessor Trustee?

No matter how you spin this - it stinks.

And wouldn't it be interesting to see who those "Gamach loans" were given to. How many of them could possibly have been friends and relatives of the Rubashkins, and how many of them would have done this for a small fee to then turn the money around back to the Rubashkins?

7 to 18-million of new Gamach loans in a 2-month time span? That's a lot of suddenly cash-strapped people flooding the Gamach market at once!

No matter how you try to spin this thing, it stinks big-time!!

And let's not forget that SMR had NO business giving charity before paying his employee's health insurance which he OWED to them because he WITHHELD that money from his employee's paychecks. That's a D'Oraiysa folks (straight from the Bible). Thou shalt pay thy workers on time - it's right there in the Torah. And on top of that he claimed he couldn't repay the bank while giving 18-million to "charity." Yep. I have a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn. It's a good bridge! Only 18-million and it's yours free and clear. Okay, for YOU, because I like you, I'm going to give it to you for only 11-million. Don't thank me. It's because I can't help but be a nice person. Just wire the funds to....

[Joe Field]

“I am in the know”
Posted by: Kushmere | May 07, 2013 at 11:09 AM

Where is your response, you are not the first asshole to come here and proclaim that they know the facts, you lying piece of shit, you cannot fool us, we know your type.

[Eli]

For starters how about the bank that he defrauded of 25 million dollars, when can we expect you to make good on your declaration that you will pay any moneys due.
Posted by: Joe Field | May 07, 2013 at 10:28 AM

Do you represent the bank. I don't see the bank putting out any statement regarding this matter that comes close to the vile statements on this site.

[FirstGenerationBavarianAmerican]

Back to the topic at hand,

The letter from Austrailian MP Michael Danby is telling. There is no acknowledgement that the US Supreme Court refused to hear the case. Danby claims not to be familiar with the case, but praises the efforts to fund legal support. He does not give the figure of how many 2255 appeals are successful. Clearly this is "constituent services".

[Joe Field]

Do you represent the bank. I don't see the bank putting out any statement regarding this matter that comes close to the vile statements on this site.
Posted by: Eli | May 07, 2013 at 07:22 PM

Imbecile, the bank spoke at the Rubashkin’s criminal trial, no need to come here and repeat that SMR defrauded them.

[Seraphya Berrin]

"It is the same mitzvah to help ANY Jew guilty or not, to be even ONE ay less in the control of any secular jail" - eli r.

That is 100% false. By that logic it would be a mitzvah to get a Jewish child molester out of jail sooner. Pidyon Shuvim was always complicated territory because the kidnappers might keep on raising demands which was acknowledged by poskim. Besides the logical flaw above, I don't know how you can compare Jews captured as collateral by evil feudal lords and brigands to people who have gone through a fair justice system.

[FirstGenerationBavarianAmerican]

This is funny. That website given in the first image redirects to a Rubashkin page on Youcaring.com, "free online fundraising". To date, NO ONE has donated money via the website! There is a link to a February 23rd, 2010 fundraising video, which we have discussed here before. That was over THREE YEARS AGO!

Those guys in East St. Kilda soliciting funds must be either dolts (didn't check to see that even the US Supreme Court saw no merits in the argument) or on the take.

[Kushmere]

Joe & Abracadabra, your wrath is misplaced. I'm sorry for not responding sooner (I don’t troll the site all the time...).
1. You may be mixing me up with another comment. I never pledged to pay back anyone. I stand by what I said. I’m not an idiot.
2. Let me try to explain this simply. The bank loan was defaulted on. The receiver has an obligation for claw back figuring out how to fairly distribute monies and assets amongst creditors. Who got paid first and who second etc. and who should have superseding claims, liens etc. So say the company paid a plastic company for plastic and a packaging firm for their products – totally legitimate expenses and payments they are in the mix for how much they received, goods for payment, and in the bigger scheme what was their profit etc. I’m not going into this further. Either you know and understand or not.
That notwithstanding, the gemachs by Zeilingold and Colel Chabad went something like this: Monday they lend $50,000 to Agri, Tuesday Agri pays back, Wednesday they lend again, Thursday pay back etc. this is the same fifty grand going in circles. The original number that you saw was a total of these transactions. The receiver knows this and has seen how this went. So in court it would be very hard to prove that there was “emptying out the assets”. On the contrary. So they settled. The money settled was the amount that was turning around, so say in the case of Zeilingold 83,000 he lost just like everyone else who lost.

Shmarya (my old friend) – please tell these guys that whether we like it or not or whatever one’s opinion on the broader matter at hand is, this is factually how it works.

I will not respond to any insults or questions that are due to not understanding how receivership works. Look into it (without emotions) and you will see that this detail is correct. I’m not discussing any other part of the case.