Abraham Stavsky, who with Zvi Rosenblatt is on trial for the murder of Dr. Chaim Arlosoroff, today took the stand in his own defense as counsel for the accused, Horace Samuel, began the presentation of the case for the defense.
Stavsky related in detail his actions on the night of the murder, declaring he was in Jerusalem asleep at the time. He also denied having known Rosenblatt or even of his existence, before they were accused of the crime.
Yesterday, following completion of the prosecution’s case, the court ordered Aba Achimeier, third defendant, freed on the ground that testimony against him was insufficient to justify holding him.
STAVSKY TALKS UNDER OATH
Stavsky, who occupied the witness stand all day, declared he desired to testify under oath. He was released from the prisoners’ dock and took his place on the witness stand. He spoke in Yiddish.
He said he was a Polish citizen and arrived in Palestine on March 9, 1933, with twenty dollars in his possession. The week following his arrival, he said, he joined the Petach Tikvah Revisionist laborers and helped them break the strike of the Histadruth, the Central Labor Federation of Palestine. He denied having inscribed death threats on stones dedicated to Ben Gurion and Dr. Arlosoroff as charged by prosecution witnesses. He admitted having owned a revolver with a silver monogram, which he sold to Osher Chasan, his landlord, on the eve of his trip to Poland.
Stavsky declared he had expected to sail for Poland on June 7, but owing to formalities in connection with his return visa, delayed his trip until June 14.
He stated the purpose of his trip was to:
1. Bring back with him four men from Trieste, Italy, who had been refused permission to enter Palestine.
2. Organize in Poland illegal immigration into Palestine.
REFUSED RETURN VISA
On Friday, June 16, 1933, the day of the murder, he proceeded to Jerusalem in connection with visa formalities, Stavsky declared. He spent most of the morning at the Polish consulate asking the Polish consul to procure a return visa for him. At noon the consul informed him Palestine authorities had refused to issue a return visa on the ground he had entered Palestine as a laborer, but was leaving as a correspondent for Hazi Haam, Revisionist newspaper.
He then decided to proceed without a return visa, Stavsky declared, and went to the immigration office to ask for repayment of his application fees. He could not obtain repayment and arranged with a friend to collect the money for him.
Stavsky related in full detail his stay in Jerusalem, accounting for practically every minute of the time.
At eight o’clock that evening, he said, he went up to his room in the Turgeman hotel, which he had reserved earlier in the day, and fell asleep a few minutes after eight.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
