An employee at Congregation Beth Elohim (CBE), a Reform temple in Brooklyn, has been arrested for a sexual assault he committed in the synagogue building.
The incident occurred on Saturday night, according to an email the temple’s leadership sent congregants on Thursday. The victim was not connected to the temple.
“On Saturday night, August 4th, in the middle of the night, a member of CBE’s maintenance staff entered our Temple House,” the email read. “Later that night, he invited an acquaintance of his who had no relation to the CBE community into the building and allegedly sexually assaulted her. He has been arrested and is in police custody.”
The leadership of the temple, which is in the neighborhood of Park Slope, has changed the building’s locks, hired extra security, fired the employee and is cooperating with police. The email said that the employee had passed a background check before being hired and had no prior convictions.
“We are angry and saddened by what happened,” the email said. “We are committed to the safety and security of everyone in our buildings, and this employee’s act was a violation of that commitment.”
JTA has reached out to CBE’s leadership for comment.
Earlier this week, a staffer at a Reform preschool was placed on administrative leave on suspicion of “inappropriate conduct.”