Hollywood, FL – Police believe they have the man responsible for a stealing a crown from a shul.
Authorities tracked down the silver Sefer Torah crown at a North Miami Mr. Gold Buyer store. It was sold to the store back in June.
Police said 44-year-old Alexander Gesin stole the crown from the top of a Sefer Torah at the Chabad of the Ocean Synagogue in Hollywood.
Rabbi Dovid Kudan never thought he would get it back. It belonged to a Torah, Judaism’s holiest scripture, that was dedicated to honor Holocaust survivors. “He called me and said, ‘Guess what? They found your crown,” Kudan said with a laugh, “and the people in the shul. They could not believe it.”
Michael Kaplan of Mr. Gold Buyer knew something was wrong when he saw it in his store, after returning from vacation. “The minute I saw what it was I knew it had to be stolen,” Kaplan said over the phone.
With the help of detectives, Kaplan and his son traced the crown back to Kudan’s temple. Police arrested Gesin when he went back to the store to try to sell another holy item. Gesin faces several charges, including grand theft.
Source: WSVN – Sunbeam Television Corp.
{Matzav.com Newscenter}
