NEW YORK
Huffington Post
Nechemya Weberman, an esteemed religious counselor in New York’s Hasidic Jewish community, was sentenced in January to 103 years in prison for sexually abusing a young girl who came to him for guidance about her faith. Now the story of Weberman’s transgressions is being told in a new book called “The Devil of Williamsburg.”
Author Allison Yarrow joined HuffPost Live’s Mike Sacks to discuss what she learned about the man who was convicted of 59 counts of sexually abusing a minor.
Weberman’s trial sparked a wave of controversy among a religion known for its carefully composed way of life.
“These are the Satmars. They are a sect of ultra-religious Jews that have very strict rules,” Yarrow said. “They have strict rules of dress. They have strict codas of marriage and children and family. When something goes wrong of this magnitude, it’s really not discussed.”
The situation was complicated by the support Weberman received from the Satmar community despite the egregious charges against him.
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