A total of 10 defendants were charged last week in federal court in Trenton. Several were in court Wednesday for hearings and were released on $500,000 bail.
The men were arrested in an undercover operation that began in August when two FBI agents, one posing as a woman trying to get a divorce, contacted the rabbis. According to an FBI complaint, one rabbi spoke about forcing compliance through "tough guys" who use electric cattle prods and even place plastic bags over the heads of husbands.
The U.S. Attorney's Office has said the organization involved in the alleged plot had been involved in up to 20 kidnappings.
