Former Columbia University gynecologist Robert Hadden has been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly sexually abusing six patients, including a minor. According to the indictment unsealed Wednesday by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, Hadden “sexually abused dozens of female patients, including multiple minors, under the guise of conducting purported gynecological and obstetric examinations.” The former doctor, who was arrested at his New Jersey home Wednesday morning, has been charged with six counts of enticing women to travel to engage in illegal sex acts. Acting U.S Attorney Audrey Strauss called Hadden a “predator in a white coat” on Wednesday, saying his conduct was “neither normal nor medically necessary.” Prosecutors alleged that he even sought out and sexually abused a young girl he had delivered.
Hadden previously avoided jail time after taking a plea deal in a 2016 case in which he was accused by 19 women of sexual abuse. More than two dozen women have come forward to accuse him of sexual abuse dating back to 1993, including Evelyn Yang, wife of Andrew Yang, the former Democratic presidential candidate. Yang told CNN last year that Hadden assaulted her in 2012 while she was seven months pregnant. It’s unclear if she is one of the six victims listed in the federal indictment.
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