A DeLand man is accused of blackmailing a city commissioner with "dirt and info" that would "have u arrested for a very long time" in an attempt to extort money from him.
- Jose A. Santiago of DeLand charged with extortion
- City commissioner says Santiago tried to blackmail him
- Deputies: Commissioner, Santiago involved with woman
"If u listen to me and pay me what I want u won’t go to prison," reads an Aug. 11 text message from Jose A. Santiago to City Commissioner Jeff Hunter, Volusia County deputies say. "20 grand it all goes away."
Santiago, 24, was arrested Monday afternoon outside a Space Coast Credit Union in DeLand and has been charged with extortion.
According to Volusia detectives, Hunter went to the Sheriff's Office on Oct. 19 to report that he'd paid a woman he'd been involved with about $15,000 for medical treatments, but he suspected the money went elsewhere. Hunter told deputies that the money likely went to a vehicle and to Santiago, another man with whom the woman was involved.
When Hunter confronted the woman about the money, he said Santiago threatened him and his family, then tried to extort him for more money with text messages saying he had “dirt and info” that would “have u arrested for a very long time,” detectives said.
Additional charges are possible, deputies said.