Indictments in Maryland Extortion Scheme
A Maryland state senator, along with her brother and a Baltimore police officer, has been indicted on charges related to an alleged extortion scheme. Prosecutors assert that Senator Dahlia Attar devised a plan that targeted a former political consultant who was recorded in a compromising situation with a married man.
The eight-count indictment, revealed on Thursday, claims that Attar threatened to reveal the affair in order to disrupt the consultant’s re-election campaign for the Maryland House of Representatives in 2022. She aimed to protect her political interests and her family’s reputation.
Initially, the consultant had collaborated with Attar during her 2018 campaign. However, the two fell out, though the reasons remain unclear.
As per the indictment, Attar expressed concern in January 2020 to a co-conspirator about the consultant’s intentions, stating, “In my mind, I just want her to stay out of the picture.” Her discomfort seemed to stem from fear of the consultant’s actions affecting her political ambitions.
Shortly afterward, her brother, Joseph, along with Officer Kalman Finklestein, reportedly facilitated surveillance. They allegedly attached tracking devices to the consultant’s vehicle and installed hidden cameras in the apartment where she met her lover.
In a WhatsApp voice message, Finklestein remarked, “Damn, I should have done that,” referencing the installation of one of the cameras, according to prosecutors.
By March 2021, Attar communicated to a co-conspirator about the consultant’s growing concerns that her political history would be used against her as election season approached. The consultant feared that upcoming public disclosures might harm her reputation.
Attar, who is also notable for being the first Orthodox Jewish woman in Maryland’s state Senate, was appointed to fill a vacancy in January. This aspect of her identity adds another layer of complexity to the case.
In a troubling encounter in December 2021, Joseph Attar allegedly confronted the man involved in the affair, claiming to possess unduly compromising footage. He instructed the man to avoid further contact with the consultant and warned that he would disseminate the video if his demands were unmet.
Throughout the conversation, Joseph Attar displayed the compromising footage to the man, further applying pressure in the exchange.
Five days after this confrontation, Joseph followed up to assure his demands had been met, to which the man replied that he had complied. He insisted that he had no intention of causing harm to Senator Attar and even pleaded for Joseph to leave him alone.
This situation is ongoing, and updates will follow as more information emerges.
