Thousands gathered Sunday afternoon in the batei medrash of Beth Medrash Govoha for a mass atzeres tefillah on behalf of R’ Binyomin Kubani, a BMG avreich who has been held in Ocean County Jail since Thursday following what supporters say is a grave misunderstanding.
Kubani was arrested by Lakewood police after a Hispanic teenager claimed he was being lured into Kubani’s vehicle. However, those close to the case insist Kubani, whose English skills are extremely limited, was simply attempting to hire a day laborer to clean his vehicle — a common practice in the area. Whether the accusation stemmed from a miscommunication or a deeper misunderstanding remains unclear, but the teen flagged down a police officer who then arrested Kubani on suspicion of luring.
Yosef Jacobovitch, Kubani’s attorney, slammed police handling of the matter. “I call on the authorities to thoroughly investigate this matter and take necessary steps to address any wrongdoing or systemic issues that may have contributed to this potential miscarriage of justice,” Jacobovitch said. He added that he had immediately contacted the Lakewood Police Department to request they take Kubani’s statement, but Detective Charles Messer allegedly refused, telling Jacobovitch, “I will not let him muddy the water with his lies.”
In response to Kubani’s detention, which is expected to last at least until a Tuesday hearing, hundreds of supporters, including the BMG roshei yeshiva, gathered Motzei Shabbos outside Lakewood Police Department headquarters on 3rd Street to protest his treatment.
A second protest had been planned for Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. by local askanim, though the BMG roshei yeshiva later urged the community to refrain from attending, reportedly after discussions with askanim.
However, the family of R’ Kubani still urged people to show up at the pre-planned demonstration – and they have, in the hundreds.
Meanwhile, the roshei yeshiva met with Lakewood Mayor Ray Coles, Assemblyman Avi Schnall, Committeemen Meir Lichtenstein and Albert Akerman, BMG CEO Yosef Heinemann, and Lakewood Police Captain Steve Allaire to discuss the matter. The outcome of that meeting was not immediately clear.
Notably absent from the developing crisis has been Lakewood Police Chief Greg Meyer, who has not made any public appearances or statements since the controversy began.
Reb Moshe Tress Shlita has shown us that he is a real leader.
our askanim are a bunch of self centered garbage. the chickens are coming home to roost
What is your name I would like to daven for you, that Hashem should help you to do
תשובה
Wow! I’m Relieved to see some progress on this important matter,
While TLS is busy with musk and trump, and basketball games, we have Lakewood Alerts actually caring about our people, thank you!
HOw dare so many commentors attack another news site?!
I too wondered why TLS hasnt covered this, and maybe there are Nefarious intentions, but you have decided that are doing EXACTLY WHAT YOU ARE ACCUSING THE POLICE OF DOING HERE!
@ Lakewood alerts, I sometimes come to your site, and i appreciate your service, but dont let that come at the behest of these wild and vulgar accusations.
Even if accusations are true they may only be said with proper evidence, and Ltoeles.
Neither of which are being employed here
Instead of complaining, try it yourself:
Try posting on TLS website, comments about this story
Try contacting TLS directly regarding this story
Share your results here!
it doesnt matter that they did not report it.
Perhaps it is self serving. but you have no idea why they dont post.
Basic Lashon Hara laws apply here.
Second, even if it IS self serving, that STILL doesnt make you right to denigrate them.
You may choose not to utilize their services, but just because they dont do what YOU consider to be correct, even if the intentions are self serving, doesnt give you license to denigrate them.
Shame on Thelakewoodscoop! How do they call themselves “the most trusted and reliable news website for the Lakewood, NJ region.” They refuse to cover a MAJOR Lakewood story out of they’re extreme hatred of BMG. They don’t need to take a side or say that BMG is correct. JUST REPORT THE NEWS! Thelakewoodscoop are a bunch of self centered, hypocritical, BAD PEOPLE!!!
Be dan ‘chaf zechus. There could be many reasons why they didn’t cover the story
So why don’t you private message them and ask them directly…
(Disclaimer, they might block you)
yeah like sleeping with the cheif of police
Yea, like not wanting to off a power trip, not respecting youngerlite…
When was the last time you saw tls post ANYTHING that had the letters bmg associated with it.
Bad or good yes does not post ANTHING related with bmg. Like it or not that is what it is. For someone partially in the know why not . As sad as this story is he is sti king to his guns.
And btw you have no idea what you are going to cause by calling this a blood libel by the LPD you are awakening a slipping giant. Just wait till they swarm the bmg parking area and ticket and tow EVERY ILLEGAL PARKED CAR AND EVERY INFRACTION THE CARS HAVE. JUST ABOUT EVERY CAR HAS AN EXPIRED INSPECTION. LPD CARS HAVE READERS THAT FIND THIS. JUST WAIT. ITS NOT GOI G TO BE PRETTY…
“Guns” pun intended? btw there is no reader for inspection stickers… they can go that route but when a police dept. decides to get into a fight with an entire town it’s not going to end well for them. In germany 1933 there were also plenty of apologists not exactly comparable but there is a point.
The sheer arrogance and ignorance reflected in your comment are nothing short of disgraceful. To so flippantly dismiss a news organization that has stood by this community through thick and thin—providing consistent, responsible reporting and often at great personal effort—is not only disrespectful, it’s shameful. Your self-righteous tone and baseless assumptions betray a complete lack of understanding of the complexities involved in communal leadership, journalism, and decision-making. You speak as though you have insider knowledge, yet your words drip with naïveté and entitlement, devoid of any grasp of the realities at play behind the scenes.
You are not just misinformed—you are dangerously presumptuous. This isn’t about disagreement; it’s about the corrosive effect of reckless rhetoric masquerading as insight. By arrogantly undermining those in positions of responsibility, you insult not only their efforts but the very fabric of communal trust. Your words don’t challenge the system—they cheapen it. If you truly cared about this community, you’d use your voice to build, not belittle. But instead, you’ve chosen the path of division, emboldened by the false confidence of someone who has never had to carry the weight of real responsibility.
Thank you chatgpt.
Because of people like you we are still stuck in the USA and Mashiach is still not coming .
i am flabbergasted that Lakewood scoop has the audacity to ignore such a story. Its time the community start boycotting them and stop using them for advertising
Instead of posting on a different site, why don’t you contact them and ask them? LakewoodAlerts is not TLS
Thelakewoodscoop TRASH would never post anything derogatory about them or about the select few organizations they’re in bed with. They see Lakewood Alerts bc people who really want to know what’s going on read Lakewood Alerts who actually unbiasedly report the news and don’t suppress stories over petty immature fights. Also Lakewood Alerts doesn’t suppress comments. But who cares about what Thelakewoodscoop Trash sees? The point is the consumer sees and hopefully soon as more people become educated on how terrible Thelakewoodscoop is they will lose they’re Monopoly.
Motzi Shem Ra.
TLS doesn’t post about about certain organizations as they were asked by those organizations not to post about them
unfortunately, wishful thinking
To all those who don’t believe this statement, a number of years ago, there was an ad in a local weekly that said that the Roshei Yeshiva have asked news sites that their letters not appear on their sites. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that until that time TLS was posting their letters and news and after a certain time, they stopped.
You don’t know who they spoke to, or what they know. Maybe find out from them why they aren’t posting the story before you go around throwing accusations like that around. Talk is cheap.
Try it yourself, They will block your number
Lazer Hasenfeld works for LPD. He has an official police ID, an encrypted digital radio, and does whatever the heck he wants. He would never dare take a stand against LPD. he is a moser and even worse. It’s all coming out now.
Like they say, the chickens are coming home to roost.
The recent arrest of R’ Binyomin Kubani, a respected yungerman and father of eight, has reverberated throughout the Lakewood community. The circumstances surrounding this incident raise serious concerns not only regarding the conduct of the police, but also about our leadership, our communal priorities, and the strength of our collective voice.
According to multiple reports, R’ Binyomin had stopped at a car wash on Route 88 to clean up a spill in his van. As is common in town, he sought the help of a day laborer. He approached a Hispanic youth he had previously hired around Erev Pesach. Rather than agree to assist, the boy took a photograph, flagged down a police vehicle, and accused R’ Binyomin of solicitation. Shockingly, despite R’ Binyomin being accompanied by an attorney prepared to clarify the situation, he was arrested without so much as an interview and was taken to the Ocean County Jail.
This is not law enforcement. This is not due process. This is a collapse of fundamental justice.
From a legal perspective, while I am not an attorney, one cannot help but wonder whether the young man’s actions snapping a photo and reporting what by all appearances was an innocent interaction may have been driven by a desire to obtain legal status through the U Visa program. This visa was created to encourage undocumented individuals who are victims of specific crimes to come forward and assist law enforcement. If that possibility was in the back of his mind, it raises uncomfortable questions about how certain well-meaning policies might be misunderstood or even unintentionally incentivize false reports.
Furthermore, what exactly is the crime here? When did offering payment to a young worker for car cleaning become a criminal offense? Should every lemonade stand and car wash run by local youth now be viewed with suspicion?
This case transcends the plight of one individual. It is a reflection of the direction our town is taking and the message we are sending to ourselves and the world. The Lakewood Police Department must take deliberate steps to restore public trust, and our community must once again feel confident that justice is applied with impartiality, not prejudice.
In years past, askanim would have never rested until R’ Binyomin was safely home by Friday. That was the norm. Where are those voices today? We need leaders who are present not only for ceremonies and dinners, but who rise to the occasion when it matters most. Those in positions of influence must either rise to the challenge or make space for those who will. Klal Yisroel needs genuine askanus not photo opportunities.
We fervently pray for the immediate and unconditional release of R’ Binyomin. May those in power act swiftly, and may this painful episode serve as a catalyst for stronger leadership, wiser policy, and a renewed communal commitment to fairness and justice.
May Hashem guide us with seichel, rachamim, and emes.
Once they prove that this was fraud and the illegal alien is trying to get citizenship, while framing a US citizen and getting a US citizen in jail unjustified. The prosecutor should go after the illegal alien for fraud and many other charges. Thereafter he would be deported as all illegal alien criminals who are guilty of criminal activities. He will lose the right of EVER becoming a US citizen.
It’s VERY IMPORTANT that charges are placed on him to demonstrate to others that such activities will NOT be tolerated.
EVERY US citizen is at risk for crimes that they did NOT commit. Unless there is a serious consequence we are ALL AT GREAT RISK of copy cat crime.
Whats a committeemans job?????
Attorney here—I am deeply confused at what the outcry is over. Under New Jersey law an officer may arrest without a warrant the moment there is probable cause, and a victim’s live, on-scene statement alone can often meet that bar. This was obviously a misunderstanding, but the accusation here is very serious, and once the teen flagged the cruiser the officer had virtually no discretion but to bring the adult in. Imagine the ethnicities were reversed, and a Hispanic fellow approached a minor in our community and asked him to come to his home. If the child did not recognize the man, and and they both probably speak English as a second language – this was likely a very scary event for the boy.
None of this means that there’s some miscarriage of justice here. The rules are complicated, but once a person is arrested, they are entitled to a first-appearance within 24–48 hours, and a detention hearing follows within three business days.
It’s unfortunate that this happened on 4th of July weekend, but they’re having a hearing on Tuesday, at which point everyone will have a chance to say their piece, and the judge will dismiss the case if there isn’t continuing probable cause. I don’t see any wrongdoing on anyone’s part here. R’ Binyomin Kubani did nothing wrong. The officers were doing their job. The child was probably scared. Of course this is a horrible confluence of events, and my heart goes out to R Kubani and his family, as well as the child and his parents. But, based on what we’re being told nothing malevolent or malicious happened. Unless there is some facts that have not been presented to us, I feel like we need to be judicious and how we as a community express our outrage.
Very levelheaded analysis, however any police officer working in this town more than a week knows that this community is a docile safe community it doesn’t take a long time to realize that.
As far as if the tables would be turned, unfortunately other communities do not have our behavior and there is what to be scared of. Add to this the fact that there is clear evidence from a camera that there was no wrongdoing, the arrest was a few hours later ,not on the scene which in a normal situation gives the police time to look over the evidence before coming to the conclusion that the way forward is arresting the individual. The attorney general first contacted the owner of the camera today , only after the pressure from the roshei yeshiva and the oilam and not from establishment askonim. A thank you and sincere wish for continuing hatzlocha goes to Moshe Tress Yankel winger and Sruli Bursztyn who were working on this in the late night hours on motzai shabbos without fanfare just to help another yid
Very astute and logical comment. While I feel horrible at the injustice that occurred, perhaps it’s not a good idea to approach a minor, who does not know you, and ask him to go in your car.
Thank you for posting the single intelligent comment on this entire thread.
You sound reasonable. I suspect that this is what the Roshey Yeshiva are thinking when they asked everyone NOT to attend the protest today. This will be sorted out (not in public), and they will send him home without charges. But no need to turn this in to a “blood libel.” That’s what they did in Fergurson. We have a very good relationship with our police force, let’s keep it this way.
The Roshei Yeshiva said not to go to the demonstration, but hundreds went.
I thought this site stood for following Daas Torah?
Even more so the leaders of the community..
Please. The Roshei Yeshivos were all there Motze Shabbos demonstrating at the police station. We follow Daas Torah and follow in their example
Demonstrating or advocating? I’m willing to bet that when they went they were greeted and talked to. You on the other hand I’m not so convinced. Plus they said not to go so not sure what daas Torah you are currently following.
They went at night and said don’t go in the morning. So you and the others are not following Daas Torah.
Might as well vote in the WZO elections.
Seems like LPD are pulling over a lot of cars especially in the area around the yeshiva.
Mamash crazy they’re all over the place.