Former Dormont store owner, extradited from Israel, convicted of 2004 rape

An Israeli man who fled the Pittsburgh area in 2004 after being accused of rape was found guilty Thursday by an Allegheny County jury.

Moshe Journo, 56, will be sentenced by Common Pleas Judge Bruce Beemer on July 12.

The jury found him guilty of rape, aggravated indecent assault, sexual assault, statutory sexual assault and indecent assault following a five-day trial.

Journo, who operated the store Mo Wear on Potomac Avenue in Dormont, was arrested on charges that he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl on Sept. 6, 2004.

The victim testified on the first day of trial that she and her friend had visited Journo’s store that day. While there, he commented on the girl’s sports shorts, which had a built-in liner, and noted she wasn’t wearing underwear.

He then offered to allow her and her friend to use the tanning salon next door, the prosecutor told the jury. The woman testified that Journo rubbed lotion on her back, left the room, and returned a short time later through the door that would not lock.

It was in the tanning room, the victim said, that Journo approached her from behind, pinned her to the tanning bed, and raped her.

He was arrested the next day, but was able to post a $25,000 straight bond.

Journo never showed up for his preliminary hearing, and it wasn’t until 2017 that he was taken into custody by Israeli authorities. He was extradited to the United States in 2019.

Journo initially pleaded guilty to several counts against him, including aggravated indecent assault, but withdrew his plea four months later on the eve of sentencing.

The case then went to trial in November, but ended in a mistrial when Journo’s defense attorney told the jury in his opening statement his client had previously pleaded guilty.