Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Alleged Orthodox Sex Abuser May Have Defrauded Charity To Buy Lingerie
By
Ben Yakas
Published Dec 6, 2012
Modified Dec 6, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
via CBS
By
Ben Yakas
Published Dec 6, 2012
Modified Dec 6, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
In the latest round of testimonies at the trial of Nechemya Weberman—the ultra-Orthodox Jewish counselor accused of sexually abusing a teen girl in Brooklyn for years—Weberman himself took the stand. He was adamant that he "never ever" inappropriately touched the alleged victim, who saw him for counseling multiple times a week for a three year period starting when she was 12. But he did admit to defrauding his own charity.
Weberman admitted on the stand to using money from his nonprofit organization, B’lev V’Nefesh, to pay for his own child’s tuition at the United Talmudical Academy in Williamsburg, the same school which insisted to the victim's parents that the teen meet with Weberman for counseling or else leave the school. “So you’re getting a salary and paying your children’s tuition?” asked Assistant District Attorney Kevin O’Donnell. “I did if I needed to,” Weberman replied. Weberman, who called himself a "rabbinical counselor" despite no training, said the non-profit was used to raise money for those who can’t afford his services.
But prosecutors brought up the fact that financial records show that the charity’s credit cards were used at BMG Corset & Lingerie, The Lingerie Shop and other undergarment stores. “Me, myself, I’m not aware of this,” Weberman claimed. “This is the first time I heard about it.” Weberman also described his first meeting with the teen: “She said, ‘Why should I trust you? Why should I talk to you? You look like a Hasidic f--k. You look like my father,’ ” Weberman testified.
Weberman actually went out of his way to besmirch the teen, saying at one point, “There are people who are better than her, right." As for why he felt that way, he said the alleged victim was “fresh’’ and “immodest’’ unlike other girls: “That’s why these were girls who were better than her.’’
Besides Weberman, who has 10 children and 18 grandchildren, there was also testimony from Baila Gluck, a runaway who lived in Weberman’s office for two years. She said that two other girls stayed at the home around the same time; one of them told authorities she caught Weberman and Gluck in a compromising position, a charge she denied. “Do you recall an occasion when [another girl] walked into the room and you were sitting on his lap and the defendant had an erection?” O’Donnell asked. “No. That never happened,” Gluck answered.
Weberman was the defense's last witness; today both sides got the chance to sum up their arguments. The Daily News wrote that the courtroom had started to resemble nightclub with all the people trying to get in and watch. One of those nightclubbers was Andrea Peyser, who gave her typically reasonable two cents about the "slimy bastard" Weberman: "The accuser, who turned 18 yesterday, had the grave misfortune of loving and revering this human piece of filth...I’m ashamed to be of the same faith as this evil, malicious creep."
Tagged
brooklyn
jewish
jews
nechemya weberman
orthodox
satmar hasidic
sexual abuse
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Need help with mental health or addiction services? NYC has a new tool.
In surveys, many who say they want want help state they don't know where to start.
By
Caroline Lewis
Published Oct 19, 2026 at 6:30 a.m. ET
NYC sues personal injury law firm accused of bogus trip-and-fall claims
City attorneys allege the firm said its clients were injured by defective city streets or sidewalks when in reality they were hit by cars or banged up in fights.
By
Walter Wuthmann
News
NYC sues personal injury law firm accused of bogus trip-and-fall claims
City attorneys allege the firm said its clients were injured by defective city streets or sidewalks when in reality they were hit by cars or banged up in fights.
By
Walter Wuthmann
NYC Council to consider earlier Legionella reporting after deadly outbreaks
By
Catalina Gonella
Staten Island fire injures 2, but spares historic 'Godfather' church
By
Giulia Heyward
Bail reform remains major issue in NY governor's race, 7 years after it became law
By
Gino Fanelli
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .