Shahs of Sunset alum Mike Shouhed is being sued by his former fiancée, Paulina Ben-Cohen, over an alleged domestic violence incident from March 2022.
In court documents obtained by ET, which were filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday, Ben-Cohen claims she was “viciously, brutally, and repeatedly assaulted and battered” by Shouhed while he was living with her and her children at their home in Encino, California.
According to the documents, Ben-Cohen and Shouhed began to argue after she’d put her children to sleep in their room, and tensions escalated as Shouhed allegedly accused her of being a bad mother. Ben-Cohen claims he called her a “f**king whore.”
It was at this point that Ben-Cohen said she told Shouhed that he should leave, and she began packing his clothes for him.
According to the documents, as she was doing so, Shouhed allegedly “ran into the room, forcefully grabbed [her] hair and shoulder, and violently threw her to the ground.” After falling to the floor, and a clothing rack falling on top of her, Ben-Cohen claims Shouhed “bent over her, struck her in the face, and then put his hand over her face and tried to suffocate her as she writhed on the ground and struggled to breathe.”
Ben-Cohen claims that, after a few moments, Shouhed left and she retrieved her phone to call 9-1-1. As she was calling, she alleges that he returned to the room and threatened to hit her again before threatening her life.
According to the documents, Shouhed allegedly “also threatened to kill [Ben-Cohen] and told her he had a hitman who would put her away.”
Ben-Cohen claims the incident escalated once more, as the fight spilled into the hallway and then into her kids’ playroom, where Shouhed allegedly attempted to suffocate her for several seconds before throwing her to the ground, onto a bicycle, and attacking her physically again.
The documents claim that the alleged assault took place over four minutes, before Ben-Cohen’s live-in nanny attempted to intervene, and eventually police arrived at the residence, where Shouhed was taken into custody.
Each of the alleged incidents in the lawsuit were accompanied by screengrabs from security camera footage, supporting the accusations.
Ben-Cohen’s attorney John C. Carpenter, of Carpenter & Zuckerman, tells ET, “This kind of behavior cannot be tolerated.”
ET has reached out to Shouhed’s attorney for comment on the lawsuit.
Mike Shouhed and Paulina Ben-Cohen at a taping of 'Watch What Happens Live' in August 2021. – Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
Shouhed was arrested for a felony in Los Angeles on March 27, 2022, according to a booking sheet previously obtained by ET. Shouhed was booked in the early hours of March 28, before being released hours later on $50,000 bail, according to the doc.
A LAPD public information officer told ET at the time that West Valley officers responded to a radio call of “unknown” trouble at approximately 10 p.m. on March 27.
Page Six, who was first to report the news, said that when officers arrived, Shouhed was arrested for alleged “intimate partner violence with injury.” The outlet reported that a LAPD public information officer said that the phrase is another legal term for domestic violence that is used when there is “visible injury” on the victim.
In October 2022, the charges were dismissed thanks to a deal with prosecutors. The dropped charges include domestic violence, battery and unlawfully attempting to dissuade a witness. Shouhed was ordered to complete a diversion program instead of entering a plea. In addition to anger management, gun safety and parenting classes as well as community service, Shouhed is also barred from possessing and owning any weapons for two years.
Shouhed faced 14 criminal charges after the March incident. In July, the Los Angeles City Attorney charged the 45-year-old reality star with domestic violence, battery and unlawfully attempting to dissuade a witness, among other charges, ET confirmed. Shouhed pleaded not guilty to every count.
In addition to charges related to domestic violence, Shouhed was charged with possession of an assault weapon, criminal storage of a firearm, and other weapons-related infractions, ET confirmed. He pleaded not guilty to those counts as well.
Shouhed announced his engagement to Ben-Cohen during Shahs of Sunset’s season 9 reunion in August 2021. Ben-Cohen has two children from her last marriage, while Shouhed was also previously married. Shouhed and his ex-wife, Jessica Parido, separated in 2015, less than eight months after their wedding.
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