Democratic state Sen. Dalya Attar of Maryland was one of three people charged with extortion and conspiracy by a federal grand jury, according to court documents unsealed Thursday.
Attar, a former prosecutor in Baltimore, was charged along with her brother and a Baltimore police officer in a scheme targeting a former political consultant in Attar’s 2018 run for the Maryland House of Delegates, according to the indictment. The three allegedly used a hidden camera to record a sexual encounter between the former consultant and a married man, then threatened them to remain silent about Attar’s candidacy.
“Victim 1 was a paid political consultant for Dalya Attar’s 2018 candidacy for the Maryland House of Delegates. Shortly before the election, Victim 1’s involvement with Dalya Attar’s campaign was discontinued after a disagreement,” the indictment reads. “After leaving Dalya Attar’s campaign, Victim 1 was known by Dalya Attar and her associates to be unsupportive of Dalya Attar’s candidacy for office.”
As we finished our week, the Senate of Maryland welcomed Sen. Dalya Attar, our newest state senator from the 41st Legislative District. https://t.co/lcHUsSnsDQ
— Bill Ferguson (@SenBillFerg) January 25, 2025
Should Dalya Attar continue serving as a state senator after being charged with extortion and conspiracy?
The defendants allegedly used the cameras hidden in smoke detectors to videotape a January 2020 sexual encounter between the consultant and her married paramour, according to the unsealed indictment. Attar’s brother allegedly entered an apartment owned by a relative of the police officer and planted the hidden cameras.
“It was the purpose of the conspiracy that the co-conspirators sought to surreptitiously obtain evidence of the relationship between Victims 1 and 2 so that the evidence could be used to prevent Victim 1 from (i) engaging in any act or speech that could negatively impact the election campaign or political aspirations of Dalya Attar; (ii) performing any work for any other candidates for office who would challenge Dalya Attar,; and (iii) otherwise taking any action that could negatively influence Dalya Attar’s election campaigns, including the 2022 Maryland House of Delegates election,” the indictment alleges.
Attar’s brother allegedly met the paramour in 2021 and encouraged him to tell the former consultant to remain silent and not work for those opposing Attar’s political ambitions. After the former consultant posted on Facebook criticizing votes Attar had taken, Attar’s brother later contacted her and threatened to release the video, claiming it would harm the consultant’s children’s chances of being selected by “matchmakers.”
“This is the first we have been made aware of state Senator Dalya Attar’s arrest and we don’t have any additional information to provide at this time,” Maryland state Senate President Bill Ferguson said in a statement.
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