On December 1st 2009, Scott Rothstein, a distinguished lawyer and partner at Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler, turned himself into the authorities for a 1.4 billion dollar Ponzi scheme. Last Friday, Yeshiva Toras Chaim had the opportunity to hear from the whistle-blower Alan Sakowitz, who realized the scam and informed the FBI. He discussed how just by keeping his eyes and ears open and not falling for the charismatic Rothstein's charm, he was able to catch what some missed and what many others realized but did didn't act on. Additionally, Mr. Sakowitz explained in detail many positive lessons we can learn from this unfortunate situation. Mr. Sakowitz understood that something was fishy simply by maintaining a cool head and not letting his eyes get too big for his head. While others were leaping to grab Rothstein's 207% percent and higher returns, Mr. Sakowitz knew something was amiss. It boggles the mind to think that other investors were answered no to when they asked to use their own attorneys or to see the case files Rothstein was selling. When Mr. Sakowitz was told no on both accounts, he began to suspect that Rothstein was not all that he appeared. Furthermore, Rothstein had many other strange practices. He would support both sides of a political race, as he was desperate to bring in more investors. While others ignored the facts, Mr. Sakowitz knew that this was all just a scheme. After calling Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky in order to be certain he was acting in accordance with halachas of mesirah, which prohibit reporting on another Jew in certain situations, Mr. Sakowitz reported Rothsein to the FBI, toppling the billion dollar Ponzi scheme. Although Mr. Sakowitz spoke of many lessons that we could learn, it is clear that one of the most important lessons we can learn is the power of greed. Greed corrupted an otherwise good man to steal money from his friends and family knowing that he could never return it. It led Rothstein to put on a show pretending to be someone he was not. Greed led investors to blindly pour money into an investment that clearly made no sense and greed cost these people to be involved in a 1.4 billion dollar scam in which 300-400 million dollars were ultimately lost. As Mr. Sakowitz said, "Anyone could have figured it out but they were just too concerned with making money." Another major message is to always do what is right and what is best for others, the community and what will sanctify G-d's name. Mr. Sakowitz put a lot on the line, as Rothstein had many significant connections in law enforcement, Sakowitz could have easily gotten in trouble for accusing someone who was regarded as a distinguished pillar of the community. Mr. Sakowitz explained that instead of following in Rothstein's selfcenter ways, we should put forth the effort to do what's right for ourselves and our communities. The Yeshiva thanks Mr. Sakowitz for his excellent presentation. 

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Avrohom Eliezer Friedman

Alumni Coordinator