The horrific murder that shocked the Haredi community in the US has been solved: In recent days, the New York Police Department has arrested seven people for questioning on suspicion of involvement in the murder of the late Haredi businessman Menachem Stark, a Satmar Hasid, a resident of the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, who was murdered about four months ago.
New York Police Department sources toldHaredim10, The police will provide details about the murder at a press conference to be held at noon with the police commissioner at One Palace Plaza. The police later postponed the planned press conference. "The reports of the arrests were published too soon," said a police source.
It should be noted that, according to information in the possession of Haredi reporters10, contrary to media reports that only three suspects were arrested, as of this morning the police had seven detainees, who were arrested during the past week.
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Haredim10 learned that the police are searching for another suspect. Sources in the prosecutor's office told the reporter Haredim10"We're waiting for one more and then we'll go to a press conference." As it turns out, the press conference will report on the holding of 5-6 detainees.
The press conference will be held no later than midnight (New York time), because by law the police are required to report arrests by 7 a.m. Since the police do not hold press conferences in the early morning, the event will likely take place at midnight.
Stark's widow was summoned to New York Police Department headquarters at noon, where she was briefed on all the information.
""A robbery attempt gone wrong""
According to the New York Post, one of the suspects admitted to being the driver. The investigation, according to the police chief, shows that "it was a robbery attempt that went wrong when the robbers struggled with Stark inside the car." This is contrary to rumors that were spread at the time, as if the murder was committed because of the businessman's debts.
The murder suspects are Hispanic and Russian.
As you may recall, the affair began on Thursday, January 1, the end of the month of Tevet, late at night, when Stark was abducted by unknown assailants as he left his office in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn. His wife, seeing that he was hesitant to return home, called the volunteer guards and the police, who launched an extensive search for him. A week later, the police found his body, burned and bruised, in a trash can on Long Island.
Earlier today, ahead of a press conference called via email by Rabbi David Neiderman, executive director of the Jewish organizations in Williamsburg and a close friend of the family, he announced the arrests. "Today is bittersweet. Bitter - because Menachem is no longer with us," he was quoted as saying.
The press conference was postponed at the request of the police, for the same reason that the press conference planned by the police was postponed.
The Police Commissioner said today only: "We are very pleased with the direction the investigation is taking.".
