Posed as Rabbi. Illustrration
Photo: AP
Victim stopped psychiatric treatment. Illustration
Photo: Shaul Golan
Ariel man poses as rabbi, rapes woman to ‘repair her soul’
Yonatan Bassa, 38, posed as Rabbi, forced woman seeking counseling to have sex in order to 'repair her soul'; defrauded her of $18,000
The Tel-Aviv District Court charged 38-year-old Yonatan Bassa of Ariel with rape and committing an indecent act Tuesday, after the latter had sexually assaulted a woman who had turned to him for counseling while he had posed as a rabbi.
During this first meeting he asked the woman for money to ‘redeem her soul’, and instructed her to stop psychotherapy as well as all psychiatric medication.
The indictment states that Bassa would claim to be a rabbi and give Torah lesson to Jewish penitents, or ba’alei teshuvah, even though he was never ordained. In March 2007, he was approached by a woman who had asked for his guidance and help in retuning to the Jewish faith.
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Bassa’s charge obediently stopped taking her prescribed psychiatric medication, and held another meeting with the ‘rabbi’. During this meeting, Bassa told her that they were a husband and wife burglary team in a past life, and must now ‘make amends’ for their past actions.
The woman protested, but an angry Bassa told her that he had conversed with God on this matter, and proceeded to kiss her. The woman then asked Bassa to end their meeting.
The two then met again at a later date, this time in Bassa’s car, whereupon her immediately began to kiss and hug the hapless woman, later undressing and raping her as she wept and pleaded. At the end of their meeting, Bassa warned his ‘client’ not to mention their meeting to anyone, as this was their own private atonement for their sins.
In addition to this aforementioned rape, Bassa is also accused of aggravated fraud. Upon learning that his female client was to receive a large sum of money for injuries sustained during an accident, Bassa asked her for a NIS 12,000 ($3,000) loan for “charity to an impoverished family”.
Additonal 'client' also raped, defruaded
The client refused at first, but ultimately gave Bassa aforementioned sum. He ultimately defrauded her of roughly NIS 74,000 ($18,000).
Bassa is also accused of defrauding and committing forcible acts on another client, who had come to him seeking spiritual guidance under the assumption that he was an ordained Rabbi.
Bassa told his client that she has committed many sins, for which she must atone, and asked her to pay him NIS 2,000 ($500) in order to cleanse her soul. During a subsequent meeting he forcibly committed a lewd act upon the woman, after telling her that having sex with him would atone for her sins.
