BEXAR COUNTY, Texas – Two people have been arrested, one person has been cited and another is on the run following accusations of abuse of an autistic man at a residential care facility, according to Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar.
On Saturday, Salazar hosted a press conference to provide information on what he called a “heartbreaking case.”
Salazar said Bexar County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to a group home around 5 p.m. Thursday, May 22, at Maofu Home Healthcare at 7314 Highland Lake Drive, off Woodlake Parkway in the unincorporated part of the county.
The group home is designed for people with mental health issues and disabilities, according to Salazar, and the initial call came in because the father of a 29-year-old resident at the facility suspected his son was being abused.
The resident is a non-verbal autistic man with limited ability to communicate, Salazar said.
The father reported seeing injuries on his son and set up a camera in his son’s room — unbeknownst to staff at the facility — which captured employees allegedly abusing the resident, Salazar said.
One of the videos allegedly shows two employees, Benjamin Tambe and Harrison Odiri, administering medication to the resident while holding him on the floor, Salazar said.
While the camera angle makes it difficult to see what is happening in the video, Salazar said the employees are seen “forcing this medication down his throat.”
Another video shows employees Tambe, Tony Israel and possibly Odiri putting the resident to bed, Salazar said, with the resident appearing resistant but not posing a threat.
The resident is seen in a defensive posture while the employees are “smacking him around, pushing him around,” Salazar said.
At one point, the employees are seen tying the resident up with a sweater or blanket and forcing a helmet over his head before putting him to bed, Salazar said.
“This is a 29-year-old man that is completely helpless. ... He can move around, but it’s pretty clear he does not understand what is going on much less the abuse that’s being heaped upon him,” Salazar said.
2 arrested, 1 cited, 1 on the run
Israel, 45, is a former part-time deputy with BCSO, Salazar said. Israel was arrested Thursday night on charges of assault against a disabled individual, a third-degree felony, and injury disabled criminal negligence.
Israel had been employed with BCSO since 2023, Salazar said, and in 2024 opted to go from full-time to part-time.
Additionally, BCSO did not know of his work with the residential care facility as Israel did not have a work permit from the agency to have outside employment. He was immediately terminated following the accusations, Salazar said.
Tambe, 53, was located on Hunt Lane in west Bexar County on Saturday and arrested without incident on charges of unlawful restraint and injury disabled criminal negligence, Salazar said.
Both Israel and Tambe are naturalized U.S. citizens, according to Salazar.
The manager of the group home, Anne Holland, 53, was issued citations for prohibited occupancy, rendering fire protection system inoperative, unlawful acts and unsafe conditions, Salazar said.
Holland has told BCSO she had no knowledge of the alleged abuse, Salazar said.
Odiri, 52, is still wanted by BCSO on charges of unlawful restraint and injury disabled criminal negligence. Salazar said he believes Odiri has a tourism visa to be in the U.S. and shouldn’t have been employed.
Salazar said BCSO has notified federal authorities of the case.
BCSO believes Maofu Home Healthcare is operating several homes in the Bexar County area, Salazar said.
He urged anyone who suspects their loved ones may be victims of abuse at the facility or has information on the group home to contact BCSO at 210-335-6000 or BCSOtips@bexar.org. Anyone with information on Odiri’s whereabouts is also urged to contact BCSO.
Additional charges for all four people are possible as the investigation continues, Salazar said.
“This is a heartbreaking case, it’s an enraging case,” Salazar said.
The resident, who has since been transferred to another facility, lived at the group home for about seven years, Salazar said.
BCSO has seen an uptick in group homes popping up in unincorporated areas, which Salazar said could be due to those areas having less regulations, allowing the homes to operate “more loosely.”
Salazar said he plans to talk to Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai about tightening regulations for the facilities.
“It’s pretty disgusting to watch, the fact that these people who call themselves home health aides are just abusing this man beyond belief,” Salazar said.
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