Haredim Admit Guilt In Money Laundering Sting

Yeshaye Ehrental, 66, and Schmuel Cohen, 25, said they illegally transferred up to $1.4 million to Rabbi Eliahu Ben Haim, who is accused of using his religious charities to hide money for a government informant.

Yeshave Ehrental, 65, tries to shield his face from the media in July as he is escorted back to his vehicle after leaving federal court. Ehrental admitted funding a money laundering operation involved in the massive New Jersey corruption sting.

Brooklyn men admit funding money-laundering in N.J. corruption sting
By Joe Ryan • The Star-Ledger

Two Brooklyn men arrested in last year’s massive FBI sting pleaded guilty in federal court in Trenton today, saying they supplied cash to a Monmouth County rabbi charged with running a money-laundering operation.

Yeshaye Ehrental, 66, and Schmuel Cohen, 25, said they illegally transferred up to $1.4 million to Rabbi Eliahu Ben Haim, who is accused of using his religious charities to hide money for a government informant, according to U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman.

The three were among scores of defendants initially charged in July in the epic sting that hinged on a failed Monmouth County developer who spent more than two years secretly recording conversations with rabbis who supposedly laundered money and public officials who allegedly took bribes.

Ehrental and Cohen, an Israeli citizen, are the 15th and 16 defendants to plead guilty in the case.

During a hearing before U.S. District Judge Joel A. Pisano, the pair said they worked with contacts in Israel from 2007 to 2009 to supply cash to Ben Haim. Authorities say Ben Haim used the cash to launder checks for the informant, Solomon Dwek, who claimed he had earned they money through criminal schemes and needed to hide it from from a bankruptcy proceeding.

Ehrental said he transferred $200,000 and $400,000 in cash to Ben Haim. Cohen said he transferred between $400,000 and $1 million. They pleaded guilty to operating unlicensed money transmitting businesses.

Ben Haim’s lawyer, Lawrence S. Lustberg, declined to comment today. During a bail hearing last month, the attorney said the rabbi has been engaged in "constructive" plea negotiations with the government.

Under the terms of his plea agreement, Ehrental faces between 12 and 18 months in prison, assistant U.S. Attorney Maureen Nakly said. Cohen faces 18 to 24 months, Nakly said.

Federal judges, however, are not bound by the terms of plea bargains and have wide discretion when imposing sentence. Pisano scheduled sentencings for Ehrental and Cohen on July 26.