Three more individuals will be sentenced this week in the case, in which undercover agents posed as Orthodox Jews seeking to obtain a divorce agreement by force.
U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman spoke to reporters outside the Clarkson S. Fisher Federal Courthouse in Trenton after the initial appearance Octl 10, 2013 for 10 Orthodox Jews charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping. (Tony Kurdzuk | The Star-Ledger) TRENTON — An Orthodox rabbi who admitted plotting to force a man to grant a divorce to his wife under threats of violence will spend up to 38 months in jail, the U.S. Attorney's Office said Monday.
U.S. District Judge Freda Wolfson on Monday sentenced Martin Wolmark, 56, who pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit extortion in January.
In addition to the prison term, Wolfson ordered Wolmark to serve two years of supervised release and pay a $50,000 fine.
He had faced up to five years in prison.
Wolmark is one of several rabbis and individuals who will be before federal judges this week in connection with the case.
The case started with a conversation in August 2013, during which a woman and her brother asked Wolmark about obtaining the divorce from her husband.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Wolmark said it could be done, possibly by violence. He recommended that they speak to his colleague, Rabbi Mendel Epstein of Brooklyn, whom he said had previously forcibly coerced divorces from recalcitrant husbands.
On Oct. 13, 2013, Wolmark had masked co-conspirators met at an Edison warehouse where they intended to force the husband to grant a "get," or religious divorce.
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But Wolmark and the co-conspirators didn't know that the woman who had come to him for helping in securing the grant for divorce was an undercover FBI agent. So was her "brother."
According to prosecutors, Wolmark told them it would cost $30,000 to get the job done.
He said some "tough guys" would use cattle prods and karate on the handcuffed husband.
Joining him at the warehouse, prosecutors said, were Jay Goldstein, 61, Moshe Goldstein, 32, Avrohom Goldstein, 36, Simcha Bulmash, 32, Binyamin Stimler, 40, David Hellman, 33, and Sholom Shuchat, 31, all of Brooklyn, and Ariel Potash, 42, of Monsey, N.Y.
Avrohom Goldstein, Potash, Shuchat, Moshe Goldstein, Hellman, and Bulmash pleaded guilty to one count of traveling in interstate commerce to commit extortion, the office said. Avrohom Goldstein and Potash were sentenced Nov. 19, to 45 and 14 months in prison, respectively, the U.S. Attorney's Ofiice said.
Shuchat was sentenced to time served on Nov. 19. Moshe Goldstein was sentenced Nov. 16, to 48 months in prison. Hellman and Bulmash were sentenced Nov. 17, to 44 and 48 months in prison, respective.
Epstein, Jay Goldstein and Stimler were convicted at trial April 21, the office said. Epstein, who was convicted of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, is scheduled to be sentenced Tuesday. Stimler, convicted of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and attempted kidnapping also is scheduled to be sentenced Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Jay Goldstein, also convicted of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and attempted kidnapping, is scheduled to be sentenced.
Tim Darragh may be reached at tdarragh@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @timdarragh. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
