Martin Wolmark, Conspiracy to Travel in Interstate Commerce to Commit Extortion, New Jersey 2013

Rabbi Admits Conspiring to Extort Divorce Consent from Reluctant Husband

TRENTON, N.J. – Rabbi Martin Wolmark, 56, pleaded guilty to conspiring to travel in interstate commerce to commit extortion in New Jersey, announced U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court, Wolmark spoke with a woman and her brother about obtaining a Jewish divorce from the woman’s recalcitrant husband on Aug. 7, 2013. A get is a divorce document which, according to Jewish Law, must be presented by a husband to his wife to effect their divorce.

Wolmark informed the agents that there were two ways to go about obtaining a get from such a recalcitrant husband, one of which was to ‘nail him.’ He then recommended that the agents speak with his colleague, Mendel Epstein, who he knew had previously used violence to coerce recalcitrant husbands into giving gets to their wives.

Wolmark initiated a conference call with the agents and Mendel Epstein on Aug. 7, 2013. On Aug. 14, 2013, the agents met with Mendel Epstein at his home to discuss the case further. On Oct. 2, 2013, Wolmark convened a rabbinical court with Mendel Epstein and Jay Goldstein in his office in Suffern, New York.

The female agent also attended and recorded the meeting. During this meeting, Mendel Epstein discussed openly the plan to kidnap and assault the purported husband in order to obtain the get. On Oct. 9, 2013, a group of Wolmark’s conspirators traveled from New York to a warehouse in Edison, New Jersey, with the intent of forcing the purported husband to give his wife a get by means of violence and threats of violence.

The conspiracy count to which Wolmark pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for May 18, 2015.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.

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