Rabbi Charged In Murder Of Police Officer

New York: A Brooklyn rabbi was charged yesterday in the contract killing of a former suburban police officer and his nephew, authorities said.

Victor Koltun, 41 -- whose rap sheet includes mortgage-fraud allegations -- is accused of hiring two ex-cons to kill Frank Piscopo, 49, and Gerald Piscopo, 28, in Newburgh, Orange County.

The suspects — Koltun, 41, and Frank Lewis, 56, both of Brooklyn, and Craig Fennell, 51, of Manhattan — were arrested Dec. 1 in New York City and charged with two counts apiece of second-degree murder, a felony.

Read More: Rabbi Victor Koltun

Koltun already faces a possible 15-year prison term on separate charges that he pocketed proceeds of a $225,000 mortgage on several Brooklyn houses he did not own.