Quincy Man Pleads Innocent to Extorting Sharon Rabbi
By Chris Burrell
A 30-year-old Quincy man pleaded innocent Tuesday afternoon in Norfolk Superior Court to charges that he extorted hundreds of thousands of dollars from a well-known rabbi in Sharon. Nicholas Zemeitus, of Willard Street in Quincy, was arrested Monday days after a grand jury indicted him for allegedly blackmailing the rabbi. Rabbi Barry Starr resigned last year as rabbi at Temple Israel of Sharon. He now faces charges of embezzlement and larceny from the synagogue and will be arraigned at a later date. In court documents unsealed Tuesday, prosecutors said that Zemeitus was living in Milton in 2011 when he first threatened to expose Starr’s alleged sexual relationship with a teenage boy and demanded money to keep silent. Starr was instructed to leave his first payment to Zemeitus in a car parked at the South Shore Plaza in Braintree, according to the office of Norfolk District Attorney Michael W. Morrissey. Prosecutors also named Alexa Anderson, 24, as a co-defendant who was living with Zemeitus in Milton. Anderson is expected to be arraigned on larceny charges later this week. Judge Douglas H. Wilkins ordered Zemeitus held without bail until a court hearing on Thursday. Prosecutors are seeking bail of $400,000. Prosecutors believe that Zemeitus extorted as much as $480,000 from Starr. Zemeitis faces seven charges of larceny over $250, two charges of receiving stolen property valued over $250, one charge of larceny under $250 and one charge of extortion. Ronald W. Rice, a defense attorney appointed to represent Zemeitus, said he will argue against such a high bail. He also said that Zemeitus was surprised when police arrested him Monday at his workplace. “Nothing has happened with this case in a long time,” Rice said outside the courthouse in Dedham.
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