"Eric Halem, a former LAPD officer, and Gabby Ben, alleged by prosecutors to have 'ties to the Israeli mafia,' were denied bail Friday. The two men are accused of pretending to serve a police search warrant and using threats of violence to coerce a teenager into emptying a digital wallet full of cryptocurrency. Both have pleaded not guilty. Halem's attorney said her client faces danger in jail: 'He worries he is going to be killed because he was a cop.' One night last December, six men met at a home in the Hollywood Hills to plot a kidnapping, prosecutors say."
"Their alleged target was a 17-year-old operator of a cryptocurrency business. His abductors, authorities charge, included a felon with ties to Israeli organized crime and a former officer from the Los Angeles Police Department. Deputy Dist. Atty. Jane Brownstone on Friday disclosed details of the alleged kidnapping at bail hearings for the alleged gangster, Gabby Ben, and the former officer, Eric Halem. Both men have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them."
"Ben, 51, has twice been convicted of fraud and deported to Israel, according to court records. Along with his blue jail jumpsuit, he wore a yarmulke and towel around his neck. He shrugged and shook his head when Brownstone said he has "ties to the Israeli mafia." Halem, 38, who appeared in court in an orange jumpsuit, served 13 years in the LAPD. By the time he left the department in 2022, he had developed lucrative side hustles, including a luxury car rental business and an app that allowed actors to audition remotely."
Six men allegedly conspired to kidnap a 17-year-old cryptocurrency business operator in late December. Prosecutors say the group included Gabby Ben, a twice-convicted fraudster with alleged ties to Israeli organized crime, and former LAPD officer Eric Halem. The suspects are accused of impersonating officers, presenting a fake search warrant and using threats to force the teenager to empty a digital cryptocurrency wallet. Both Ben and Halem pleaded not guilty and were denied bail. Halem served 13 years with the LAPD and had several side businesses; his attorney said he fears for his safety in jail.
Read at Los Angeles Times
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]