A Philadelphia man extorted nearly $2,000 from a New Jersey man who sent him a naked photo in response to a Craigslist ad.
Gothamist reports that 42-year-old Steven J. Beisher pleaded guilty to theft by extortion yesterday for blackmailing a man who sent a naked photo of himself in August 2012 while responding to a Craigslist ad soliciting homosexual sex.
According to Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman, Beisher unearthed the man's phone number and called him the next day, threatening to tell the man's wife if he refused to pay him. Beisher instructed the man to meet him seven times at different locations in Philadelphia over a nine-day period and reportedly received a total of $1,950. Following the final meeting, the victim refused any additional payments and threatened to involve the State Police.
Beisher, who will be sentenced in July, has eight felony convictions in the state, with his most recent for theft by extortion coming in October 2012.
[via Gothamist]
