ISRAELI POLICE have arrested a Tel Aviv man who is believed to have fathered 89 children from 32 women on suspicion of enslavement and rape.
Sixty-year-old Goel Ratzon, who claimed the women and children lived with him of their own free will, was detained along with 17 of his “wives” and 37 children.
The police who raided his Tel Aviv complex, fearing mass suicide by family members, came accompanied by social workers and psychologists.
An Israeli TV documentary, aired more than a year ago, had shed light on the guru and his group of female admirers, but police lacked concrete evidence of any wrongdoing.
The authorities have known about the cult since 2000, but only in June 2009, after one of his wives complained and agreed to act as an informer, did the police launch an undercover operation.
The guru never actually married any of his “wives”, but they considered Mr Ratzon to be the saviour (Goel in Hebrew), and tattooed his name and even pictures of him on their bodies. The children were all given the name Goel.
The guru drew up a rule book for family members outlining fines for infringements. The women were forbidden to talk to men or contact their biological families.
Rule 3 stated “No conversation is permitted outside the living room. It is forbidden to talk nonsense.” Fine: €40. Rule 6 read: “It is absolutely forbidden to question Ratzon on his whereabouts or intention.” Fine: €80.
Police are keeping Mr Ratzon away from the cameras, fearing he may pass on secret instructions to cult members to hurt themselves.
They intend to use a new law against human trafficking to bring charges against Mr Ratzon. The law includes a clause against slavery, and prosecutors will argue that Mr Ratzon’s wives suffered from “psychological slavery”.