Leaked Complaint Letter about Alleged Cover-up of Sexual Abuse Shocks Melbourne’s Orthodox Jewish Community

By Shannon Deery
The Australian
April 10, 2014

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/leaked-complaint-letter-about-alleged-coverup-of-sexual-abuse-shocks-melbournes-orthodox-jewish-community/story-e6frg6n6-1226880111997

THE man behind a leaked complaint about an alleged sexual abuse cover-up at one of Melbourne's most prestigious schools says he has been left shocked by its widespread release.

Police have launched an investigation into how the confidential complaint was leaked after it was photocopied and distributed widely.

The author of the complaint sparked a police investigation after he complained about the handling of allegations of sexual abuse at Yeshivah College in a November 2012 letter.

The college has been rocked by a worsening sexual abuse crisis that has seen numerous former employees jailed for the abuse of dozens of students over several decades.

But critics of the college's handling of abuse cases say there were active attempts to cover-up the evil acts.

In the letter to the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority, the man behind the leaked letter questioned the way former principal Rabbi Abraham Glick had handled complaints.

He presided over the running of the college between 1986 and 2007 when at least two former members of staff abused students.

The letter complaining about Rabbi Glick's handling of child abuse cases was passed to Victoria Police detectives investigating matters at the school.

The Victorian Institute of Teaching was also made aware of the complaint. The letter was subsequently leaked and has in recent weeks been distributed widely among the tight-knit Orthodox Jewish community.

The author of the letter said he planned to speak to his lawyer after it was photocopied and handed out at a recent service at the Yeshivah synagogue.

His personal details were on the letter and it he says he has been victimised because of the complaint.

Rabbi Glick is one of the state's most revered Jewish community leaders. His nephew, Rabbie Meir Shlomo Kluwgant, is a Victoria Police chaplain. Rabbi Kluwgant has been a police chaplain since 2009 and is responsible for five police stations — Caulfield, Bayside, Prahran, Moorabbin and Malvern.

Another family member has been accused of distributing the letter of complaint.

The family member has been contacted for comment.

Manny Waks, CEO and founder of victim support group Tzedek, said there was a culture of silence, cover-ups and intimidation at Yeshivah College.

He said anyone who spoke out against Yeshivah was victimised and harassed.

"It is important to remember that Rabbi Glick was the Yeshivah College Principal throughout the period of the many proven cases of child sexual abuse. As Principal, Rabbi Glick should be held to account for some of the ongoing cover-ups that occurred within this institution. Yet astonishingly he has not yet been held to account in any way, shape or form — not him nor any other leader within this institution, most of whom have been in leadership positions for decades."

Rabbi Glick was in charge of the school when Rabbi David Kramer was hurriedly shipped to the US after complaints were made by parents alleging serious sexual misconduct in the early 1990s.

Kramer was extradited to Melbourne last year and jailed for 'unforgivable" molestation of four students at the school.

Rabbi Glick was also the head of the college when former security guard and karate instructor David Cyprys abused nine students there in the early 1990s.

He was first found guilty of indecent assault of a young boy at Yeshivah College in 1991.

But he was allowed to continue working there after being fined $1500 and put on a bond, without conviction.

He was later charged with more than 40 offences in the 1980s and '90s against nine children aged 7-17.

In September he was found guilty of five charges of rape of a former student. He admitted assaulting eight others.

Rabbi Glick was questioned by police last year after a former student accused him of raping him.

Police dropped an investigation after determining there was insufficient evidence.

In a letter to the complainant police said they would consider reopening the investigations if more evidence came to light.