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Chef, 40, who appeared on Food Network’s ‘Chopped’ is arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting a child a year after being sued by women who claimed he abused them when they were minors
- Shalom ‘Sal’ Yehudiel, 40, is accused of sexually assaulting a child in Teaneck, New Jersey
- He is accused of sexually assaulting a child under 16 multiple times
- The arrest comes as the result of a months-long FBI probe, according to NJ.com
- Yehudiel appeared on Chopped in 2020; he didn’t win but was celebrated by the Jewish community in northern New Jersey
- Last year, he was sued by two women who claimed he sexually abused them
- One was a waitress who said he forced her to perform oral sex on her when she was 17 and worked for him
- The other said he pushed her against a wall and kissed her when she was 15
- It remains unclear if either of those women are involved in his arrest
A New Jersey chef who appeared on the Food Network’s show Chopped in 2020 has been arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting a child, a year after being sued by two women who say he forced himself on them when they were minors.
Shalom ‘Sal’ Yehudiel, 40, is accused of sexually assaulting a child in Teaneck, New Jersey. The alleged crime was reported to Bergen County prosecutors in November last year, around the same time as two women sued him.
Those women included a former waitress who worked at his restaurant, The Humble Toast. She said she was working for him when she was 17 when he forced her to perform oral sex on him.
Another woman claimed he abused her when she was 15. It’s unclear if the woman in that lawsuit is the same person involved in the assault he has now been arrested for.
Yehudiel, who is originally from Israel, is married and has young children. He has two restaurants in New Jersey – The Humble Toast and La Cucina Di Nava.
Shalom ‘Sal’ Yehudiel, 40, is accused of sexually assaulting a child in Teaneck, New Jersey. The alleged crime was reported to Bergen County prosecutors in November last year, around the same time as two women sued him
Yehudiel, who is originally from Israel, is married and has at least one daughter. He has two restaurants in New Jersey – The Humble Toast and La Cucina Di Nava. He is pictured with his wife
The Humble Toast, the chef’s deli in Teaneck, New Jersey. He also runs an Italian restaurant
He has not yet commented on the allegations but he denied the women’s claims at the time.
It’s unclear when Yehudiel is due in court next. He is being held in the Bergen County Jail.
Yehudiel has not yet commented on his arrest. He remains in custody
Last year, Yehudiel was sued by a woman who claimed he forced her into performing oral sex on him when she worked as a waitress at The Humble Toast.
She said she was 18 at the time and he allegedly made lewd comments to her on multiple occasions.
He denied her allegations, and those of another woman who said he abused her when she was 15.
At the time, he said the two women were trying to extort him.
The controversy however sparked a boycott of his restaurant, where protesters showed up with signs last year.
He stepped down from the day-to-day running of the restaurant.
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