ByAnonymous, Anonymous
The jury in the trial of a Jewish teacher accused of sexual assaults on two schoolgirls have retired to consider their verdict.
Father-of-10 Todros Grynhaus, 50, is alleged to have molested the girls when they were between the ages of 13 and 15 then relied on the Orthodox Jewish community’s "resentment" of reporting matters to the police to keep the allegations secret.
The son of a rabbi, Mr Grynhaus breached his bail conditions and flew to Israel when the allegations first surfaced – only returning when he was re-arrested and deported after almost two years, Manchester Crown Court has heard.
Mr Grynhaus, of Salford, is accused of five counts of indecent assault and one count of sexual assault said to have been committed on the girls between June 1996 and March 2005.
Summing the trial up to the jury after three weeks of evidence, Mr Justice Turner said Mr Grynhaus had been described as a "highly respected" man who enjoyed a happy relationship with his wife.
The judge told the jury that Mr Grynhaus had said the allegations were made against him out of "revenge" and to obtain money from him.
Mr Grynhaus had tried to explain to the jury why he fled to Israel. Summing up his evidence, Mr Justice Turner added: “He wanted to avoid shame and disgrace being brought on his family.
Giving evidence in his defence earlier, Mr Grynhaus’s wife Leah said: “He is highly respected. We left for Israel in February 2013 and it was traumatic for the children when we first heard about the allegations of sexual abuse.
“We have a happy marriage and love each other.”
His father, the influential London Rabbi Dayan Dovid Grynhaus, had told the court: “I have a good relationship with my son. He is obedient and respectful.”
Mr Justice Turner added: “What you have to decide is whether they are giving evidence in order to help you in revealing the truth or whether they are giving evidence out of a misguided loyalty which is not accurate.”