Law&Crime Sidebar - Fake TikTok Rabbi Abused Adopted Sons

Episode Date: April 20, 2025

For years, Hayim Nissim Cohen presented himself as an Orthodox Jewish rabbi to his thousands of TikTok followers. He told Jewish news outlets that he wanted to “save” Jewish children from non-Jewish homes, so he adopted nine boys. But Texas prosecutors say he was actually abusing the children and now he’s going to prison. Law&Crime’s Jesse Weber spoke with trial attorney Jeffrey B. Simon about the charges against him and his punishment.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW:Go to the App Store and download the free Experian® app now! https://www.experian.com/credit/experian-app/?pc=bch_exp_sidebarHOST:Jesse Weber: https://twitter.com/jessecordweberLAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:YouTube Management - Bobby SzokeVideo Editing - Michael Deininger, Christina O'Shea & Jay CruzScript Writing & Producing - Savannah Williamson & Juliana BattagliaGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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will keep you on the edge of your seat. Don't let your fears take hold of you as you dive into this addictive series. Love thrillers with a paranormal twist? The entire Oracle trilogy is available on Audible. Listen now on Audible. Hi I am Nassim Cohen, the man who posed as a terminally ill rabbi, amassing a massive TikTok following by portraying himself as a selfless foster father. It was all A lie. Prosecutors say Cohen was actually a serial predator who sexually abused the very children he claimed he was protecting. So how did this happen? I'm going to break it all down for you right now. Welcome to Sidebar, presented by law and crime. I'm Jesse Weber. For years, Hyam Nassim Cohen presented himself as a selfless Orthodox Jewish rabbi,

A terminally ill adoptive father who took in vulnerable boys from Texas's troubled foster care system. Story captivated social media, earning a nearly 200,000 followers on TikTok for posting videos such as this one where he seemed to share words of encouragement and joy. My dearest friends, moving forward, let's create the DNA of joy and happiness, the footsteps and the pathway of righteousness. Remember, it is a mitzvah to be happy. But behind the facade lay a monstrous reality. Cohen was actually not a rabbi at all, nor was he dying. Instead, prosecutors say he was a serial predator who sexually abused the very children he claimed to save. On April 7th, Cohen was sentenced to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to four counts of continuous sexual assault of a child and one count of indecency with a child.

And this sentence is an end to an absolutely horrifying tale of deceit and abuse. I'm going to start from the beginning and I'm going to take you through this fraud of a case, Hyam Cohen. So for starters, he was born under a different name, Jeffrey Lujan Bejel, according to reporting from the Times of Israel. He legally changed his name multiple times beginning around 2009 and then began claiming that he was this Hasidic Jew from Brooklyn, despite, by the way, having not. no legitimate rabbinical credentials.

He legally changed his name, crafted an elaborate backstory, telling outlets like the Jewish press that his mission was to rescue Orthodox Jewish foster children from non-Jewish homes. And his narrative gained traction. He documented his life on TikTok under the name, Our Unique Family, amassing a devoted following of almost 200,000 followers, and nearly 4 million likes. And on that account, he showcased his nine adopted boys, presented himself as a single father, again, overcoming terminal illness to provide them a loving home, this high-standing leader in the Jewish community. But that is when the cracks soon began to show. Because behind

closed doors, Cohen's life was anything but saintly. In 2019, he was charged with indecency with a child involving a foreign exchange student from Spain, not one of his adopted children. But shockingly, he was reportedly allowed to remain free on bond and kept custody of his adopted sons. Now, for years, there seemed to be these whispers of something going on. Prosecutors say CPS, Child Protective Services received several complaints, but no action was taken or it didn't appear that way. And then the dam finally broke in February of 2023 when one of Cohen's sons, then 17 years old, called into an Atlanta-based podcast called Blind Skin Beauty using a burner phone. And trembling, this teen revealed he had been sexually assaulted since he was 11 years

old, just weeks after he was adopted. According to prosecutors, one victim, though it's unclear which one, described how Cohen pepper sprayed him if you refused to perform sex acts, force the boys to abuse each other. And this boy who called into the podcast even reportedly told investigators, everything he does is fake. And also added that Cohen only uses a wheelchair when people are watching. So the podcaster, Tawiah Payne, immediately alerted authorities. This is when the arrest unfolded, this illusion all began to crumble. Paines told the local affiliate, KHOU 11, I just started freaking out, to be honest.

I was like, listen, I just want to help you. And local affiliate, KHOU 11, spoke with Paines and reported that other people who were part of the podcast told the teen to seek help. But he told them he was waiting until he turned 18 to turn his father in. But thanks to the efforts of that podcast, investigators were able to get a warrant for his arrest. The children were rescued. They were taken into CPS custody. There is a lot we have to get into here, including the charges and what ended up happening.

But first, I want to bring on a special guest. I'm joined by Texas trial attorney, Jeffrey B. Simon. Jeffrey, thanks so much for coming on. Just your initial thoughts about this case. And is this something that people in the community are talking about a lot? for sure. I mean, this social influencer, popular 300,000 followers on TikTok is a pedophile and a con. And seven of his nine adopted sons have alleged that he sexually abused them. He was nothing like he claimed.

And now he's going to spend the rest of his life in jail, thank God. So now the question is, how was he able to do this in the sense, how was he able to legally change? his name and fabricate this rabbinical identity seemingly without verification. The fact that they're, when you talk about CPS, was there a fault there? Was there not a follow-up there? I'll get into more specifics of that foreign exchange student in a minute. But let's just talk about how he was able to craft this fake narrative of the terminal illness and the rabbi and that he's this loving father.

How is that possible? Three things. He's a good con. secondly he was living a virtual reality online which is not the same thing as a real one where sometimes facades will work and lastly you had an obvious systemic failure of law enforcement foster care child protective services and we need to be looking inward as well as outward as to how the hell we let this happen and what we're going to do to make sure it never happens again because as you point out correctly, the criminal case is over, but these boys will never be the same.

All of their lives, they will be damaged in trying to manage it. How is it possible that he can maintain custody of his adopted sons after an arrest? By the way, an arrest for indecency with a child. It wasn't a conviction, but it was an arrest. Are there not legal mechanisms in place because it's just an accusation? Talk to us about that. Well, it's true that an accusation is not the same thing as a conviction. It's apparently true that Child Protective Services made eight visits to the House

dealing with complaints and suspicions, as well as obviously the probable cause that led to the arrest of his indecency with a then 16-year-old exchange student. But how the heck they could conclude on each of those eight visits? just nothing to see here is unfathomable. Now, I do understand that he coerced the children, he bribed the children allegedly to fake it for child protective services. But if you don't have the expertise to manage and see through that facade, you probably ought to find another line of work. Hey, I want to thank our incredible sponsor Experian for sponsoring Sidebar. Now, this is big because Experian can help you stay on top of your finances. April, by the way, is financial

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Use the link in the description or scan the QR code to download the free app now. Results will vary. Additional terms may apply and see the app store for more details. Why would a victim wait until 18 to report abuse if you know? Because he was fearful that he would be forced to stay in the home. In other words, he figured when I'm 18, I can legally just leave and then go about all this business, is rational, setting aside the question of whether it's entirely accurate. Is there a standard for terminating parental rights if there is an allegation of abuse, whether, you know, the criminal

context regarding the, you know, the sex offense with that foreign exchange or just mere allegations, something, you know, complaints to CPS. Is there a mechanism in place to terminate these parental rights? It's difficult because they're, you know, part of a very unique system. There is, but it failed. In other words, what that 17-year-old obviously, saw was is child protective services keeps coming out and he keeps coercing and or bribing my siblings who are too fearful to tell the truth so the complaint seems uncorroborated and he's going to punish me perhaps even through greater sexual assault for having made outcry that's why he went to the length to get the burner phone and try to be anonymous and call the podcast and so forth however he could

also have tried to seek emancipation now it takes a little legal training that a 17-year-old may not have to try to follow that step he would have had to try to find a lawyer and so forth so he really was in a difficult spot and he was rather innovative in finding a way to make outcry you know thank goodness he did that and thank goodness for that podcast um because let me lay a little bit more about these allegations and how it all unfolded so when houston police raided Cohen's home they found a hospice care provider supposedly tending to him But then according to the forward, when detectives took him to two hospitals, doctors found nothing wrong with them. Prosecutors later alleged that Cohen's oxygen tanks, the wheelchair, the claims of terminal illness, they were all elaborate props.

They were tools to manipulate sympathy and evade scrutiny. According to court documents that retained by KHOU 11, the allegations against Cohen were horrifying. The outlet reported that a CPS investigator ended up discovering the podcast, tracked its IP address, and reached out to law enforcement. enforcement to contact that 17-year-old. And the officer who eventually made contact with the teen testified during a hearing following Cohen's arrest back in 2023. I received notification through the CPS that there was a podcast of one of the children that had met in not cry of sexual abuse. And when did you learn about that podcast? On February of this year, just to do rumor indicate.

Okay. Um, did you? you make this my office specifically need aware of this podcast yes sir and did you review the podcast yes ma'am and did you determine who the caller was that called into the podcast yes now and who was that and is he one of the adoptive children of the defendant high and coens yes ma'am before and forward can you identify the person that i'm referring to as high and cohen in the courtroom today identifying an article of clothing in which he is wearing and the position in the courtroom in which he sits. To my left,

writing a ordinance, Mr. Chairman C. The record is like to deaconis who's identified the defendant. The record is the defendant in the case. When you learn of the podcast and the subsequent CPS investigation,

what were your next courses of action? To reopen the case, without you you and inform my supervisors that this case has to be opened again without you information and then what was your next step up for reopening the investigation following up with the complaints following up with CES as well to make sure that we can obtain that video of the podcast and make sure that everything that was being said about plus true and at some point did you um

Did we determine to make suppress charges and execute a search warrant on the defendant's house? Yes. Now, during a police interview, the investigator played the podcast, and the boy confirmed he was the caller, and then began describing the abuse that occurred behind closed doors, stating that all of this started just weeks after his adoption in 2016. And Cohen reportedly forced these boys, I'm sorry to say this, to massage his feet before molesting them, and coercing them into sex acts.

And when the teen, this teen turned 14, the abuse says escalated to rape. And claimed two 10-year-old brothers also reported being abused, although he had witnessed it firsthand. But according to him, whenever Cohen summoned any of the boys to his room, they all knew what was going on, what it meant.

Cohen allegedly subjected his sons to verbal abuse too, calling them white trash, racist. The teen stated that while Cohen used a wheelchair in oxygen tanks and public or around visitors, he didn't use them, went alone with his sons, and the investigating officer testified to one specific incident. He says he saw captured on video that seemed to back this up. And where was the defendant? Standing over the child. Okay. And striking him with the belt. Yes. Did the defendant that you see here today was that. Was that.

a person that seems to require a wheelchair in that video? No, ma'am. Was he standing independently on his own? Yes, ma'am. Was he requiring a oxygen mask? No, ma'am. Was he able to utilize his full access his lungs while he yelled at this child? Yes, ma'am.

Was it what you have seen when you arrest him that day and the way he displayed himself up into the point where he was admitted to the Harris County Jail. Yes. The way you saw in the video matched the defendant, the way he conveyed himself in his health later on. So Jeffrey, talk to me about this. What is the legal weight that the podcast recording carries his evidence

since the victim confirmed it was his account during a police interview? You know, it's a unique piece of evidence, but it's a piece of evidence nonetheless. Well, if there had been a trial, and of course there won't be because he pled to sexual assault in four instances and indecency with the child and another, then there would have been an argument about whether or not the young man's claims on the podcast were admissible.

There'd be a claim that it was hearsay by the defendant, and of course they would say, no, it meets a hearsay exception as a type of outcry, and there are exceptions that exist there. Having said all that, it is obvious that once he broke, through. Once he made outcry, that brought the police in at a whole other level. They obviously

talked to others of the siblings. And then it became very clear that this was just, unfortunately, an elaborate con and sex crime that was being perpetrated by Mr. Cohen. The fact that it was on video, really no way to say, hey, why are you not in a wheelchair? You don't look really sick. engaging in this conduct. In general, general, if you know in Texas, would be faking a terminal illness? Would that be a crime? It certainly would be an aggravating circumstance. Now, when you fake illness and health care services are performed on you, especially ones that are publicly funded, that is a crime. If you fake being sick in order to get some kind of either emergency care or police intervention, that is a crime. Here, faking being terminally ill on the podcast, or frankly,

even when he would appear in court, is not in an of itself a crime, but it is certainly evidence that he has been running an elaborate ruse, the kind where he not only alleges to be rabbi and a Jewish and terminally ill, but he's none of those three things. And worst of all, he's not a good parent. No, no, no, no, no. And the fact that the CPS investigator was able to track the IP address, figure out who was calling, figure out, you know, uncover this, I got to give credit to that investigator. I didn't even know CPS would have those kinds of tools at their disposal to do that. No, I agree. There was some really good investigative work that was done at long last, right? Unfortunately, there was some terrible investigative work of different types that perpetuated,

enabled this crime, not on purpose, but unfortunately to terrible effect. Now, as I mentioned earlier, there was that exchange student that was involved in this. So in 2019, Cohen was charged with indecency with a child after a 16-year-old foreign exchange student from Spain reported to his school principal that Cohen had been abusing him. According to court documents, again reviewed by KHOU 11, the victim told police that Cohen would manipulate him emotionally, make him feel guilty for minor misdemeanor. steps, such as leaving clothes on the floor, by claiming the boys' actions made him sad, that he needed to make him happy. Think about grooming techniques. And the abuse escalated, according to this report, that Cohen began fondling the teen in his bedroom after the other boys in the house had gone to sleep. So after several months, court records state Cohen started forcing the victim

to perform sex acts. The victim disclosed that he complied out of fear, fear of being sent back to Spain. That would probably have cost him a year of schooling. And the victim, along with one of Cohen's sons is now part of a civil lawsuit. Their attorneys argue that the system failed to protect them. The attorney representing the boy, Cheryl Chandler, expressed her frustration saying Cohen should never have been able to adopt one child, let alone nine. You know, a single person who has no job who claims to be a Jewish rabbi who is not, and they just keep putting more and more kids in his care?

Yeah, I understand the frustration completely validated. Do you think that this civil suit will be successful? Sure. I don't think that Mr. Cohen has any assets to speak of. The question will be whether they prevail against child protective services or the other agencies they're suing. Now, the challenge there is that if you're a governmental agency in Texas, as in most other states, there are sovereign immunity defenses. In other words, it is difficult to hold governmental agencies liable for civil damages. in most instances, and then even if you can, there are often statutory caps on what's available. But the importance, I think, here is simply that the effort to hold them accountable for their alleged failures is as important as anything else, to set an example, to create some kind of healing or cathartic process, both for that exchange student, as well as, I believe, one of his other adopted Sons is in that case. And they filed that case in 2021. So they're getting down the line and being

able, I would think, to tell their story. And there's another part of this story that's really, really sad and disturbing and really disconcerving that during that 2023 court hearing that we showed you earlier, three of Cohen's eldest adopted sons. They stood by him in a show of support. Just a few months later, one of those sons, Avshalom Cohen was arrested in charge with two counts of sexual assault involving a younger sibling. According to court records, Avshalom, then 19, allegedly bribed the 14-year-old victim with energy drinks or vapes in exchange for sex acts. And this was not his first run in with the law because in 2023, Avshalom had already been arrested in Fort Ben County on drug possession and unlawful weapons charges. Months later, in April 2023, he was detained

again near Eagle Pass charged with human smuggling. So, Jeffrey, we talk about so many times, you know, the abused become the abusers, right, or the alleged abusers, if these allegations are true, it's not surprising, right? Oh, I agree with you. And of course, we don't know whether or not of Shalom is guilty of the crimes charge. He's presumed innocent, but unfortunately, it is all too common that victims of sexual assault, especially when they're young, become predators themselves. And you have to wonder for his welfare as well as whether or not he, too, has become a predator, all the other victims here. How will their lives turn out? Will they turn out to be responsible adults who treat others with empathy? Or will they be also so damaged from what

happened to them. And it may sound trite, but I mean it. We should we should pray for all of them. As a legal matter, if these allegations are true and he's ultimately convicted, can he use it as a defense? Look what my adoptive father did. Certainly in mitigation of punishment. It is not a defense to say, I'm a predator because I was prey. It can be a mitigation in punishment. if convicted or if he pleased to a crime. Let's talk once more about Hyam Cohen for a second. So he was charged with abusing six of his nine adopted sons, ages nine to 17.

And on April 7th, he appeared in court to plead guilty to four counts of continuous sexual assault of a child, as well as one count of indecency with a child regarding that foreign exchange student. You're gonna have to speak up for me. Are you pleading guilty because you are guilty? Is that a yes? You're pleading guilty because you're guilty?

Did you go over the paperwork with your attorney? Yes. Did he answer all your questions? Yes. Are you satisfied with his representation? Yes. Are you a United States citizen? Now, at his sentencing, as you saw there, he looks quite different.

He appeared in a wheelchair, shaved head, gaunt face, looks completely different from his last court appearance. His health, I mean, it's hard to assess what's really. real or not with this guy after faking a terminal illness for so long, but Judge Danilo Lakeo was unmoved when handing down his sentence. With respect to cause number 1908-138, I sentenced you to 40 years in the Texas Department of Corrections with respect to cause number 1808485, I sentenced you to 40 years in the Texas Department of Corrections. So as I mentioned, Mr. Cohen received four 40-year sentences and one 15-year sentence

to be served concurrently rather than consecutively. But here's the thing. Cohen, who's 38 years old, will spend 40 years in prison, meaning he'd be 78 years old when he's finished serving his sentence. And if he really does have health ailments, think about what that means. I mean, he's going to be ineligible for parole. But Judge La Keo also delivered some very harsh words during that sentencing. You realize that you're never, I mean, you're never going to get out of prison.

You're going to die in prison? You understand that? No. 40 years how old are you you know how old you are I discussed these sentences the fact that there are four years with mr. Cullen he doesn't understand I know he understands I know you understood everything I've said to you from the beginning to the end you ran an interesting concert you violated all these young boys and you're here today facing justice and whatever age you are plus 40 years

chances are you get out are very slim to none and you deserve that sentence you understand that right all right now following the sentencing harris county assistant district attorney janet oswald expressed relief at the outcome saying it feels like justice has been done for the seven boys they don't have to testify and relive their trauma that's a relief that is right i mean geoffrey that is a relief whenever you have in these really really sadistic brutal disgusting sexual abuse cases you can work out a plea deal where the defendant pleads guilty, how much of a benefit is that to the victims in this case? They don't have to go on the stand. Explain what happened to them. The jury is spared from photos, documentary evidence, witness testimony. That feels like a win.

I agree with that, especially for victims who are minors. Sometimes when the victim of a sexual assault is an adult, they may want to testify that they want to look their accuser in the eye in court. They want the cathartic experience of explaining what happened to them and that they have survived it and that they're here to hold the defendant accountable. But that's usually not appropriate for minors, and especially these minors, because what this man did is he exploited the fact that they didn't have anyone else to turn to. You can imagine sexual assault circumstances within a home where there is another parent or a grandparent or a sibling that now lives outside the home, an uncle and aunt, even a cousin, with whom they're close and they can say this is happening

to me. But all these young men were adopted. They had no one else. It was a horrifying situation that He was extremely conniving in how he exploited. Were you surprised that the judge sentenced him 40-year sentences to run concurrently rather than consecutively? You think about it, why not just make sure that he spends the rest of his life in prison for what he did? Because the crimes that he pled guilty to have affected these individuals for the rest of their lives. I mean, you talk about potentially destroying their lives. Why not just make sure that it's life in prison? Well, let me give you the reason out loud and then the quiet reason, at least as I perceive it.

The reason out loud is if he gets out of jail at 78 or 80 years old, he is not going to be in a condition and all likelihood to continue to offend. So if he does 40 years in jail, he will have come out as someone not likely to commit the same crimes again. Now, the unspoken reason that I'll just offer an opinion on is pedophiles do very poorly in the Texas penitentiary in Huntsville or in related prison systems here in our state. It is the job of the prison guards to protect him from attack, but pedophiles are often targeted in jail, a fact which is probably not lost on anyone in the criminal justice system, including the judge. And while the judge is not rooting for physical violence against this man, the likelihood that it will happen within the system is real and probably not lost on him. And there's no way he's going to be up for parole, right? I mean, the idea of him being ineligible for parole, that had to be on the table. I mean, there are any factors under the Texas

sentencing guidelines that would have made sense otherwise? No, right? I mean, given the gravity of these crimes, he shouldn't be eligible for parole. He'll serve every day of that 40-year sentence, which, as you point out, is really more well over 100 years in sentencing, but the offenses run concurrently. And if he survives those 40 years, I think the judge was satisfied that justice will have been served. And if he doesn't survive those 40 years, that's because the prison system is very difficult for anyone, especially for pedophiles. And clearly the judge was like, you hear me, you know what I'm saying, you know, people will look at that, see him in that wheelchair, just another ruse they will say. I mean, it's just a, it's a disturbing case on so many different levels. But now Cohen's victims are in state care. They're slowly trying to rebuild their lives. For them, this sentencing was a long-awaited reckoning. That is the final chapter of Hyam Cohen's deception that was finally closed. And what is left behind? is a trail of shattered lives and a system that arguably failed to protect them.

Jeffrey Simon, thanks so much for taking the time. Really appreciate it. Thank you for having me. It's always a pleasure to be with you, Jesse. All right, everybody, that's all we have for you right now here on Sidebar. Thank you so much for joining us. And as always, please subscribe on YouTube, Apple Podcast, Spotify, wherever you should get your podcasts.

I'm Jesse Weber. I'll speak to you next time. You can binge all episodes of this Law and Crime series ad free right now on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.