Maryland Senator Indicted for Blackmail and Extortion
A Maryland state senator is facing serious charges following an indictment that accuses her of secretly recording two critics, including a former campaign consultant, during an intimate moment, and attempting to leverage that footage for blackmail.
According to federal prosecutors, Senator Dahlia Attar, along with her brother Joseph “Yossi” Attar and Baltimore Police Officer Kalman Finkelstein, conspired to tape the two individuals in bed and then used those recordings to threaten them, aiming to silence any opposition.
The indictment, which spans 20 pages and was unsealed recently, details counts of conspiracy, extortion, illegal wiretapping, and violations related to travel laws.
Prosecutors claim the group specifically targeted a consultant, referred to as Victim 1, who had worked on Attar’s 2018 campaign before switching allegiance to her political rival. Victim 2, involved romantically with Victim 1 at the time, was also married to another individual.
The indictment reveals that the defendants allegedly installed hidden cameras disguised as smoke detectors in Victim 1’s apartment. The recordings captured intimate footage of the two victims.
It is claimed that these recordings were utilized to threaten Victim 1 with exposure should she choose to speak out against Attar or support competing candidates.
By early 2021, Attar reportedly communicated through WhatsApp about strategies for stifling criticism, stating, “We have a very easy way to shut her up.” She is also noted as saying she wasn’t planning to leak the footage but was warning the victims against any pushback.
In December 2021, Yossi Attar allegedly met one of the victims in a Baltimore shopping center and warned, “I have hours of footage of you in bed together.” He continued, threatening to expose the video to her family and religious community if she didn’t comply.
The indictment indicates that the group attempted to keep both victims quiet leading up to Attar’s re-election in 2022, using encrypted communications and regularly deleting messages to prevent detection.
If convicted, the charges could result in lengthy prison sentences, though Attar’s office has not provided any comments on the matter. Meanwhile, Baltimore Police Chief Richard Worley confirmed that Finkelstein has been on administrative leave since 2022 and currently lacks police powers.
Attar, a Democrat and former Baltimore prosecutor who was appointed to the state Senate in January 2025, had been seen as a rising star within Maryland’s Orthodox Jewish community.
