Torahs come home

A sense of joy returned to the Jewish Center of Kew Gardens Hills recently, when eight precious Torah scrolls and other valuable objects were returned, after being stolen a month ago, in what authorities are calling an “inside job.”
A crowd of approximately 80 members of the congregation awaited the scrolls’ return to the temple at 71-25 Main Street, under a “Welcome Home” banner, adorned with balloons, on Tuesday, September 16, after the precious items were returned to leaders of the congregation in a ceremony at police headquarters in Manhattan.
“The 107th precinct did a yeoman’s job in recovering the Torahs,” said Jean Abrahamson, the congregation’s secretary.
“In more than 60 years, this congregation has never experienced anything like this. It was devastating; today there is exhilaration everywhere,” she said.
The parchments, containing painstakingly transcribed Hebrew texts of the first five books of the Old Testament were allegedly stolen from their resting place in the temple on Thursday, August 14, by Alan Lozano, 23, a live-in custodian at the time.
Lozano and his alleged accomplice, Eric Giraldo, 28, are due back in court on Thursday, September 18, charged with grand larceny. Both have made bail, according to Department of Corrections’ records.
Herman Saltzman, 82, chair of the Center’s Pews and Memorials Committee recalled his feelings when the curtain was drawn back to reveal the theft.
“I was devastated,” he said, his face beaming now that they were back. “I’ve been seeing a cardiologist since. You could say I had a lot of anxiety,” he confessed.
“Devastation” is the word that seems to best fit the feelings of the congregants, when they discovered the scrolls, some dedicated to departed survivors of the Holocaust, were gone.
Likewise, “Exhilaration” fits the spirit of their return.
“After (Police) Commissioner Kelly officially returned the Torahs to us at the ceremony,” Saltzman recalled with a broad smile, “Police officers from the Shomrin Society [a fraternal group of Jewish officers] carried them down to the cars. It was wonderful,” he said.
Saltzman could barely conceal his pride and yes, exhilaration, as he fumbled with the keys necessary to get past the newly-enhanced security system.
“It’s a good day,” he smiled.