dead sea scrolls rivalry?

here is an interesting piece of scholarly rivalry:

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Dead Sea Scrolls scholar's son arrested in NY


By SAMUEL MAULL | Associated Press Writer
March 5, 2009

NEW YORK - A New York City lawyer who is the son of a Dead Sea Scrolls scholar was arrested Thursday, accused of using the stolen identities of academics to discredit his father's professional rivals.

Raphael Haim Golb, 49, used New York University's computers to hide his identity while he used dozens of Internet aliases to trash adversaries and skew debate about the Dead Sea Scrolls, District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said.

Morgenthau said the investigation began last August when Dr. Lawrence Schiffman, professor of Hebrew and Judaic Studies at NYU, reported that he was being harassed and impersonated over the Internet by an anonymous person.

Golb, son of Dr. Norman Golb of the University of Chicago, opened an e-mail account in Schiffman's name and sent 11 e-mails to NYU officials in which Schiffman purported to admit to plagiarizing scroll scholarship, Morgenthau said.

At the same time, the district attorney said, Golb used other Internet aliases to send e-mails to NYU officials and he created Internet blogs, all accusing Schiffman of plagiarism. He also harassed other academics, Morgenthau said.

for the rest of the article, read here.

for another write-up, see here.



NEWS RELEASE
March 5, 2009


Contact: Alicia Maxey Greene
212-335-9400



Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau today announced the arrest of a 49-year-old man for creating multiple aliases to engage in a campaign of impersonation and harassment relating to the Dead Sea Scrolls and scholars of opposing viewpoints.

The defendant, RAPHAEL HAIM GOLB, was arrested on charges of identity theft, criminal impersonation and aggravated harassment. The crimes in the Criminal Court Complaint occurred during the period of July to December of 2008.

The investigation leading to today’s arrest revealed that GOLB engaged in a systematic scheme on the Internet, using dozens of Internet aliases, in order to influence and affect debate on the Dead Sea Scrolls, and in order to harass Dead Sea Scrolls scholars who disagree with his viewpoint. GOLB used computers at New York University (NYU) in an attempt to mask his true identity when conducting this Internet scheme. He gained access to NYU computers by virtue of being a graduate of the university, and having made donations to its library fund.

The investigation, which included a court-authorized search warrant that was executed this morning at GOLB’s apartment, began in response to a complaint by Lawrence Schiffman, Ph.D., that he was impersonated over the Internet. Dr. Schiffman is a NYU professor, chairman of the Hebrew & Judaic Studies Department and a leading scholar in the field of the Dead Sea Scrolls....

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