DECATUR — A 37-year-old Decatur man was arrested Aug. 5 on multiple felony charges following an investigation into repeated domestic violence, according to the Otsego County Sheriff’s Office.
Mohamad Hussein Haidar faces charges including predatory sexual assault, three counts each of first-degree rape and first-degree criminal sex act, and three counts each of second-degree assault and first-degree stalking.
Additional charges include three counts each of labor trafficking, first-degree coercion and third-degree rape, along with two counts of second-degree strangulation.
Investigators were contacted in July by victims who reported sustaining severe abuse for several years while living with Haidar, according to the sheriff’s office.
The victims were forced to live at the residence and submit to extreme abuse that often resulted in serious physical injury, authorities said.
Haidar created an environment that prevented the victims from leaving through threats of additional abuse and death, according to the sheriff’s office.
Investigators located Haidar at his residence and took him into custody without incident.
A search warrant was executed at his residence, resulting in multiple items of evidence being seized.
The Susquehanna SPCA responded to the residence and removed numerous animals.
Haidar was processed at the Sheriff’s Office and lodged in the Otsego County Correctional Facility to await centralized arraignment.
The Otsego County District Attorney’s Office provided a bail recommendation of $100,000 cash bail, $100,000 credit card or $1,000,000 surety bond.
The investigation involved assistance from the Opportunities for Otsego Violence Intervention Program, Susquehanna SPCA, Bergen County New Jersey Prosecutors Office and the New York State Intelligence Center.
The investigation is ongoing and additional charges are pending.
