HOUSTON – A man who adopted nine boys from foster care is now accused of sexually abusing at least one of them after the teen called a podcast show, making an outcry of what allegedly was happening to him and his brothers, according to court documents.
Hayim Nissim Cohen, 38, has been charged with sexual assault a child ages 14-17 and continuous abuse of a child.
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Outcry
A 17-year-old boy called into a podcast show and disclosed the sexual abuse he and his brother experienced by Cohen, according to court records. The documents did not state when the victim called into the show.
The teen told the podcaster that the suspect made him perform sexual acts and alleged that he was repeatedly “raped” by Cohen since he was 11 years old, and it was continuing.
The teen noted that there have been eight CPS investigations on his adoptive father, but nothing was ever done. He said he wanted to wait until he was 18 to come out about the abuse because no one ever believed him, according to court records.
The teen told the podcaster that he was able to call into the show through a burner phone using Wi-Fi, docs show.
CPS was notified and agents were able to track down the caller through an IP address after reviewing the podcast.
Action
When the teen was contacted by CPS and interviewed on Feb. 6 at the Houston Police Department, he initially denied the allegations about his adoptive father and what was said on the podcast, according to court records.
When the CPS investigator played his voice heard on the episode, he became scared and admitted that he was the person who called in and detailed the abuse he and his brother suffered while living with Cohen, documents show. The teen also admitted that the sexual abuse began just two weeks after he was adopted by Cohen.
He told the investigator that he has tried to run away and report the abuse, but that Cohen would turn all his siblings against him and blamed him.
During the interview, the teen said, when Cohen would get mad at them, he would call them “white trash” and “racist.” He detailed a time when his brother ran away but that the suspect lied to constable deputies, saying the boy was sleepwalking, when they returned him.
According to records, the teen said Cohen is fake and pretends he can’t walk because of his illness and only uses his wheelchair when people come over to the home or when they are out in public.
CPS also learned that Cohen was out on bond for indecency with a child from a previous case on Oct. 21, 2019.
Cohen was arrested Friday and booked into the Harris County Jail. A bond has not been set at this time.
His next court date is set for Feb. 23.