Did Miami Rabbi Pay Hush Money Over Molestation Claim?
Newly released surveillance video shows a Miami Beach rabbi accused of molesting an 11-year-old girl giving the girl’s mother an envelope that is believed to contain money.
The mother turned the envelope from Rabbi Steve Karro over to Miami Beach police, Miami’s Local10 reported Monday. The envelope contained at least $500 in cash, the television station said, citing sources. The mother claimed the rabbi was trying to buy her silence.
The video is dated May 19, a week before Karro was arrested. The alleged molestation at an art gallery owned by Karro took place in April.
Karro, 55, was arrested in May and earlier this month was released to house arrest. He is not allowed to come into contact with children and is required to wear a GPS monitor.
The Russia-born Karro, who was raised in Jerusalem, is a substitute rabbi at the Shaare Ezra Sephardic Synagogue Congregation on Miami Beach.
The family’s attorney, Jeff Herman, told the local media that the family has been kicked out of the synagogue since the rabbi was accused of molesting the girl. Members of the Jewish community have tried to convince the family to drop the charges, Herman said.
Karro is accused of placing the girl on his lap and kissing her on the neck, then touching her bottom. He has said that there was nothing improper in how he kissed and hugged the girl, whom he reportedly asked not to tell about the encounter.
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Dive In
-
Fast Forward Nike apologizes for marathon ad using the Holocaust phrase ‘Never Again’
-
Fast Forward Ohio Applebee’s defaced with antisemitic graffiti reading ‘Jews work here’
-
Fast Forward J.B. Pritzker accuses Trump of ‘disparaging the very foundation of Judaism’
-
Fast Forward Trump on Iran: ‘If we don’t make a deal, I’ll be leading the pack’ into war
Most Popular
- 1
Culture Trump wants to honor Hannah Arendt in a ‘Garden of American Heroes.’ Is this a joke?
- 2
Fast Forward The invitation said, ‘No Jews.’ The response from campus officials, at least, was real.
- 3
Opinion A Holocaust perpetrator was just celebrated on US soil. I think I know why no one objected.
- 4
Fast Forward Columbia staff receive texts asking if they’re Jewish, as government hunts antisemitic harassment on campus
In Case You Missed It
-
News These are the most influential Jews in Trump’s first 100 days
-
Fast Forward Nike apologizes for marathon ad using the Holocaust phrase ‘Never Again’
-
Opinion I wrote the book on Hitler’s first 100 days. Here’s how Trump’s compare
-
Fast Forward Ohio Applebee’s defaced with antisemitic graffiti reading ‘Jews work here’
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
Republish This Story
Please read before republishing
We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:
- Credit the Forward
- Retain our pixel
- Preserve our canonical link in Google search
- Add a noindex tag in Google search
See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.
To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.