Melbourne Jewish school principal won’t be extradited

A former principal of a Melbourne Jewish school will not be extradited from Jerusalem to face sexual abuse charges because of mental illness, a court has ruled.

Malka Leifer is wanted in Victoria on 74 counts of child sexual abuse after she allegedly exploited at least 15 pupils during private lessons while she was a teacher and principal at Adass Israel School.

Despite claims from the Israeli police that Leifer is faking mental illness, the Jerusalem District Court ruled on Wednesday that she must undergo a further psychiatric evaluation before the court reconsiders her extradition on March 28, according to The Herald Sun.

Leifer (centre) is seen being escorted by police as she arrives for a hearing at the District Court in Jerusalem on February 27

Despite claims from the Israeli police that Leifer (pictured) is faking mental illness, the Jerusalem District Court ruled on Wednesday that she must undergo a further psychiatric evaluation before the court reconsiders her extradition on March 28

Leifer, a mother-of-eight who is now aged in her 50s, was first accused back in 2008 but fled Australia in the middle of the night with her family, amid allegations the school helped fund her journey. 

A previous extradition attempt between 2014-2016 failed after Leifer was hospitalised in mental institutions and expert opinions determined she was not fit to stand trial.

But undercover private investigators filmed Leifer depositing a cheque at the bank and shopping, prompting Israeli authorities to launch an investigation to see if she was pretending to suffer from mental illness to avoid extradition, leading to her February 12 arrest.

At Tuesday’s hearing at the Jerusalem district court, Leifer sat silently, her head bowed and her eyes hid from sight.

An Australian diplomat attended part of the session alongside a few ultra-Orthodox members of Leifer’s community.

Prosecutors presented a new psychiatric evaluation determining Leifer could face justice.

‘I’m asking the court to accept this evaluation and determine the defendant is fit to stand trial and set a discussion’ toward Leifer’s extradition, prosecutor Matan Akiva said.

At Tuesday’s hearing at the Jerusalem district court, Leifer (centre) sat silently, her head bowed and her eyes hid from sight

Prosecutors presented a new psychiatric evaluation determining Leifer (centre) could face justice

But judge Chana Miriam Lomp accepted the defence’s argument that the new evaluation was not acceptable as it lacked the district psychiatrist’s signature.

In addition, Leifer’s attorney Yehuda Fried said he had not received all the evidence claiming to show his client was faking her mental condition.

Lomp ordered Akiva to hand the defence the evidence used by police to determine their suspicions and said a further hearing would take place in two months.

He ordered her to be detained in a psychiatric institution in the meantime.

Judge Chana Miriam Lomp accepted the defence’s argument that the new evaluation was not acceptable as it lacked the district psychiatrist’s signature

Speaking with journalists after the hearing, Fried was confident the debate over whether Leifer could be extradited would take ‘years,’ saying the new psychiatric evaluation ‘has no legal value’.

‘We’ll demand to receive all the investigation materials. After getting all the materials, we will ask for another evaluation,’ he said.

‘If the court decides to halt the extradition process — excellent,’ Fried said.

‘If not, we’ll ask to investigate all the experts since 2014 who presented evaluations, and during those investigations we will determine whether or not she is fit to stand trial or not.’

Leifer’s case has drawn attention from Australian media since her re-arrest earlier this month, with Victoria state premier Daniel Andrews saying he has lobbied Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directly on the issue.