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Arrest warrant affidavit outlines graphic allegations of sexual assault by New Haven rabbi
By Anna Bisaro
NEW HAVEN >> A former student who accused a prominent rabbi of sexual assault told police that refusing to perform sexual acts with Rabbi Daniel Greer had been punishable by bad grades and threats of expulsion from the Yeshiva in New Haven, according to the newly released arrest warrant in the case. The alleged victim in this case, Eliyahu Mirlis, told New Haven Police Department detectives in August that he had been forced by Greer, the founder of the Yeshiva in New Haven and the Gan School, to perform various sexual acts while he was a student at the Yeshiva School. The alleged abuse occurred between 2002 and 2005. Mirlis’s lawyer, Antonio Ponvert III, confirmed Wednesday that Mirlis is the victim in this criminal case, though he is not named in the arrest warrant. The New Haven Register does not usually identify alleged victims of sexual assault, but Mirlis reported through Ponvert that he wanted to come forward with the allegations. Mirlis is now 29. Greer, 77, turned himself in to police Wednesday after the criminal charges of second-degree sexual assault and risk of injury were filed. He appeared in court Thursday for an arraignment and is due back on Aug. 11, according to the clerk’s office. Greer is free on a $100,000 bond. A message left for Greer’s attorney William F. Dow III was not immediately returned. According to the arrest warrant in this case, Mirlis alleged that the rabbi first kissed him when he was a sophomore in high school during a private meeting at 777 Elm St. According to Mirlis’s recounting of events to detectives, when Mirlis “freaked out” about the rabbi’s behavior, Greer told him “I do it (referring to the kiss) to all my kids.” During these alleged private meetings at various school buildings, hotels and motels, or Greer’s residence, Mirlis told detectives the rabbi would give Mirlis a range of alcoholic beverages — Bloody Marys, scotch or wine — and then they would perform sexual acts. The warrant affidavit states that over time the sexual encounters escalated in nature and included several times in which both Mirlis and the rabbi were in Greer’s bedroom and had sex. No condoms were ever used during these encounters, Mirlis told detectives. The alleged abuse stopped in June 2005 when Mirlis graduated from the Yeshiva School, the warrant states. Police stated in the warrant affidavit that a search-and-seizure warrant to examine the rabbi’s body corroborated Mirlis’s specific descriptions. Allegations against Greer were first made public in May 2016, when Mirlis filed a federal lawsuit against the rabbi and the Yeshiva School, claiming he had suffered great emotional damage as a result of the alleged abuse that occurred when Mirlis was a teenager. During the civil trial, Greer denied the allegations.
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