Israeli-born former school principal convicted of 18 charges, cleared of 9 others, 15 years after she escaped arrest by fleeing to Israel; to be sentenced at a later date

A former principal at an ultra-Orthodox Jewish school in Australia was found guilty on Monday of sexually assaulting two sisters there, 15 years after she escaped arrest by fleeing to Israel.

After a seven-week trial and seven days of deliberations, the jury found Malka Leifer guilty of 18 charges, including rape and indecent assault, for sexually assaulting the two students, Dassi Erlich and Elly Sapper, in a series of incidents between 2003 and 2007. It cleared her of nine other charges, including several relating to a third sister, Nicole Meyer.

Leifer, 56, sat motionless and did not react as the verdicts were read. The judge will sentence her at a later date.

While victims of sexual assault are normally not identified…