"The fact that people do not file complaints about
the theft of tefillin is the main reason
police cannot open a comprehensive investigation
which could curb the trend," according to Rabbi
Yisroel Yod of the Pe'er Institute. His remarks
were based on a letter to him by the head of the
Dan Region Police Investigation Department, Moshe
Goldstein, in response to an earlier letter of
Rabbi Yod.
Goldstein said that in the Dan region between the
years 1998- 99, there were only twenty-four
reported incidents of theft of tefillin. He
claims that considering the number of complaints
filed over the past two years -- an average of only
one a month -- it is impossible to view the
phenomenon of tefillin theft as a serious
crime wave. Goldstein wrote that information about
more frequent thefts of tefillin has not
reached police since additional victims, if there
are more, do not complain to the police. As a
result, the police lack information about the full
extent of the thefts. They can only act based on
the information they have.
Goldstein also notes that the police in general
need civilian cooperation in order to effectively
carry out their functions according to the law.
This includes filing complaints by victims of
crime, he noted. As long as there is no awareness
on the part of victims of the importance of filing
complaints it will be difficult for the police to
do their job, which is not only to help those
directly harmed, but also to protect the entire
community.
According to our information a serious wave of
tefillin thefts has recently struck
synagogues and yeshivos in Bnei Brak. In one
yeshiva, 20 pairs of tefillin were stolen. A
similar number were stolen from a shul in
Shikun Hei. As a result, many synagogues have
installed special safes in order to prevent thefts.
Since a pair of tefillin can easily be worth
several hundred dollars, this is a very serious
amount.
The community is asked to be on the alert and to
try to identify the thieves who come to the
shuls at prayer times, disguised as
chareidim, and manage to steal tefillin. People are
also asked to file a complaint with the police in
every case of tefillin theft.
