Rabbi, leader of Syrian Jews in U.S., pleads guilty in federal corruption probe

(CBS/AP) TRENTON, New Jersey - The spiritual leader for the Syrian Jewish community in the United States has entered a guilty plea in a massive federal corruption probe in New Jersey.

Rabbi Saul Kassin was among five rabbis arrested in July 2009 and charged with money laundering by using charitable nonprofit groups they or their synagogues controlled.

Kassin pleaded guilty in a Trenton federal courtroom Monday to one count of unauthorized money transmitting. The 89-year-old is the chief rabbi of the Syrian Jewish community in Brooklyn and New Jersey.

Solomon Dwek, a member of Kassin's Syrian Jewish enclave, became an undercover cooperating witness and wore a wire for the government after being arrested for bank fraud.

There are 46 defendants in the federal investigation into money laundering and political corruption.