Israeli to face trial on 70 sex abuse charges in Australia
ABC News
A former school principal who was extradited from Israel after a six-year legal battle was ordered to stand trial on 70 charges of child sex abuse
MELBOURNE, Australia -- A former school principal who was extradited from Israel after a six-year legal battle was ordered to stand trial Thursday on 70 charges of child sex abuse.
Malka Leifer, 55, pleaded not guilty to all the charges at the end of a court hearing. The committal hearing at the Melbourne Magistrates Court was held to determine whether there was sufficient evidence to warrant a trial.
Leifer is accused of carrying out the abuse against sisters Dassi Erlich, Nicole Meyer and Elly Sapper when Leifer was head of Melbourne’s Adass Israel School between 2004 and 2008.
The three sisters testified by video link during a closed court hearing. Leifer also appeared by video from Melbourne’s women’s prison, the Dame Phyillis Frost Centre. Melbourne is currently in lockdown due to a coronavirus outbreak.
