The Rape Scandal Shaking the Haredi Community
Newly revealed testimonies from the Chaim Rotter case detail disturbing allegations of sexual assault and coercion involving multiple victims. Victims describe being manipulated, violated, and treated “like prey,” while Rotter maintains that any encounters were consensual.

In a shocking breach of a court-imposed gag order, the names of several complainants in the high-profile sexual abuse case against Chaim Rotter, one including a prominent figure in the ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) community, were leaked this morning in Haredi news chat groups. The revelation has intensified scrutiny on the ongoing trial of Rotter, the former chairman of the "Shomrim" volunteer patrol organization, who was arrested on July 2 and faces charges of rape and indecent acts against both men and women.
The leak, which surfaced in private groups popular among Haredi residents, directly violates a judicial order prohibiting the publication of victims' identities to protect their privacy and safety.
Police have not yet launched an investigation into the source of the leak, raising questions about enforcement priorities in a case already marred by allegations of intimidation. Rotter's defense team has previously accused investigators of bias, claiming the probe aimed to incriminate rather than uncover truth. "Mr. Rotter committed no offense; all acts were consensual," his attorneys, Raanan Amusi and Moran Saadon, stated last week.
The scandal has shaken Bnei Brak's tight-knit Haredi world, where Rotter, leveraging his role in Shomrim, a group that collaborates with police on community security, was accused of exploiting his authority to assault minors and adults over decades.
A special investigation team formed to probe the case has revealed details of the investigation that went from zero complaints to about 80 testimonies and 16 complaints. The team, which unusually includes Haredi investigators, endured two months of challenges. Now, they share about the first complaint, building trust with victims, and difficult moments in interrogation rooms. Exclusive excerpts from investigations and confrontations obtained by ynet show the image of this powerful man, who faces four indictment charges and a new complaint. "The affair is far from over," the investigators state.
The investigation began with a single tweet on Twitter that provided a significant hint. "We understood that the key word was trust," says Captain Hila Ben Baruch Sinai, head of the investigations bureau for the Dan district and team leader. "This is a sensitive population in sensitive male-on-male sexual incidents, and Bnei Brak is small, everyone knows everything." Initially, victims were taken to a police station outside the district to isolate them from background noise, but proceedings were later returned to the Dan district. Due to claims of lack of trust and concerns since Rotter worked with police, the district commander established this team.
The first complaint came on the eve of the Israeli attack on Iran, when Rotter was abroad, and a gag order was issued immediately. "It was important to isolate police work from the media," Ben Baruch Sinai said. At that stage, there were five complaints, with more expected.
Complaints did arrive. Yaakov Meir, a Bnei Brak resident who met Rotter at a police station and knows his name from the Haredi street, said: "There were reactions, attempts, and pressures. They weren't heavy, but present. On the other hand, I received encouragement in the city, despite being a cop, despite Rotter being prominent and powerful—a dam broke."
The big fear was a mechanism around Rotter trying to dissuade witnesses and intimidate complainants. Six people were arrested. "There's a structured organization of powerful people," Ben Baruch Sinai explained. "We feared they'd terrorize complainants physically or through harsh calls. We're not attributing it to the released suspects, but we know about very difficult phone calls victims received."
Ynet explains Rotter's pattern: Sexually arousing talk, taking to arousing places, discussing orientations, organs, experiences, then the act, indecent acts, rape. Objections, reservations, pressure by Rotter, unwanted touching and then saying "Oh, but we're just playing", not listening when the victim objects. It often started in Shomrim vehicles.
This is what some os his victims said:
"He got out of the car and pulled me out. Before that, I resisted ... After that, he went into the bushes and signaled for me to follow...
"He started touching me, I didn't agree"
He sees prey right in front of his eyes," another complainant said in his testimony. "He has a target he's marked, and he wants it. He doesn't stop until he's satisfied, and my nightmare continues. He murdered my soul."
The affair isn't over, per the police: "[There was a] new complaint on the day of his indictment, [there are] more complainants, but they are scared and we understand. Contact us directly, we'll come. Shame, fear, anxiety aren't yours."
Tragically, for his victims, the police explain, "in the era of Yehuda Meshi Zahav, no one thought of Chaim Walder, and in the Walder affair, no one thought of Rotter. That's exactly what we're doing here."