Man Arrested In Hit-And-Run That Injured Long Island Rabbi
(JTA) — Police arrested a New York man and charged him with a hit-and-run accident that seriously injured an elderly rabbi.
Rabbi Jordan Kelemer, 71, is the long-time rabbi of the Young Israel of West Hempstead on Long Island.
He was hit in December while crossing the street in front of the synagogue; the driver fled without stopping. A passerby found the rabbi and called police. Kelemer suffered a severe head injury in the accident, but has returned to work in the synagogue.
Benitez Rodolfo, 46, of Far Rockaway, New York was arrested Friday and charged with leaving the scene of an accident and tampering with physical evidence, according to Nassau County police. He pleaded not guilty at First District Court in Hempstead on Saturday, Newsday reported.
Police do not believe the rabbi was targeted by the driver. The accident reportedly was captured on the synagogue’s surveillance camera, though the license plate numbers were not clearly visible.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
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.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
