CBS2 Exclusive: Ex-Nannies Allege Child Neglect, Sexual Abuse In Octomom Home
UPDATE 4:44 p.m. Friday: CBS2 has confirmed that the Orange County District Attorney's office has rejected to file charges against Nadya Suleman, citing insufficient evidence.
LA HABRA (CBSLA.com/AP) — Two nannies who worked for Nadya Suleman claim they witnessed child neglect and sexual abuse in her La Habra home, CBS2 reported Thursday.
The former caregivers, who wish to remain unidentified out of fear Suleman will sue them, said they've broken their silence because the abuse escalated.
"I feel like those children are in danger," one of the women told CBS2's Stacey Butler. "I think something is going to happen to those children if nothing is done."
The nannies allege Suleman tied her eight newborns to their bed with cheese cloths around their waists to keep them from getting out of their cribs.
They said she blocked the door with a chair from the outside for hours because she didn't want the babies to bother her while she napped.
The women also claim Octomom allowed her six older children, ages 6 to 11, to physically abuse the younger ones. In some cases, the nannies allege the younger children got black eyes and bruises.
Within the last two weeks, La Habra police detectives called one of the nannies into the station for an interview.
She told investigators it wasn't just physical abuse she witnessed—it was also sexual.
"(One of the boys) would take (his sibling) away and take her to another area. And he would be touching her. I told Nadya everything. She never did (anything). 'It's okay, don't worry about it.' That was her attitude," said the woman.
In 2010, the two women said they were so worried about the octuplets, they wrote an anonymous letter and placed it in every mailbox on Suleman's street.
In it, they begged "whoever can help" to "please have social services check Nadya's home. There are things going on in the home that need attention right away. The octuplets are not safe. You will be sorry for not checking out now if something bad happens later."
A couple who lives on Suleman's former street said they weren't surprised by the contents of the letter.
"It made me sick to my stomach," said the ex-neighbor. "We're very frustrated because Nadya appears as one thing on the news and on talk shows and yet we witness everything first hand and it's nothing like it's shown on TV."
The woman's husband said, "We hear the way she talks to her kids. It's verbal abuse."
The couple joined three other neighbors and mailed a copy of the note to Child Protective Services and called police.
La Habra police have spent weeks interviewing witnesses and have completed their investigation into the alleged abuse.
Butler tried to talk to Suleman while she still lived in La Habra, but she wasn't interested in an interview.
Butler also tried to call and email Octomom's manager, Gina Rodriguez, but never got a response.
Rodriguez, however, told the Associated Press in an email that the allegations are not true and came from a woman who became obsessed with the children.
She said the woman befriended Suleman shortly after the babies were born and started to stalk Suleman and sent her threatening text messages.
Suleman moved from La Habra in part to avoid the woman, Rodriguez said.
"None of the allegations are true," she said. "This is a woman who became obsessed with the children and contacted me to help her write a book."
(TM and © Copyright 2012 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
