Malka Leifer was extradited to Melbourne at the end of January 2021 after six years of legal battle with Israel
Malka Leifer, a former principal of an ultra-Orthodox Jewish school in Melbourne, Australia, was found guilty of child rape and indecent assault in Victoria County Court on Monday. The jury thus found her guilty of the charges brought against them by two sisters, former students of the establishment, but cleared her of all the charges brought by a third alleged victim.
Malka Leifer, 56, had been charged with 29 sexual offenses dating back to when she was director of the Adass Israel School in Melbourne from 2003 to 2007. The mother of eight, who pleaded not guilty, was eventually found guilty of 18 charges.
After taking refuge in Israel to escape prosecution, Malka Leifer was extradited to Melbourne at the end of January 2021, after six years of legal battle with Israel, aimed in particular at determining whether or not she was feigning mental illness to be declared unfit to stand trial.
The case also shook the Israeli political class. Last August, former Health Minister Yaakov Litzman, from the United Torah Judaism party, was sentenced to eight months probation and fined 3,000 shekels for abusing his position to prevent the extradition of Malka Leifer, from the same ultra-Orthodox current as him.
