Maryland Democratic state senator indicted for allegedly blackmailing former political consultant

Maryland Democratic state Sen. Dalya Attar was indicted for allegedly blackmailing her former political consultant with the woman's affair.

The unnamed victim, a dual Israeli-American citizen and political consultant who supported Attar’s first state delegate campaign before souring on her after a disagreement, was allegedly secretly recorded in bed with a married man as part of the blackmail scheme, The Hill news outlet reported.

Attar, her brother Joseph, and a Baltimore police officer, Kalman G. Finkelstein, who assisted with her campaign, each face eight counts, including multiple counts of conspiracy, extortion via interstate communications, aiding and abetting, and interception and disclosure of a wire.

“I ran for public office because of my strong belief in serving my community that I love, and I would never do anything to knowingly jeopardize my constituents’ trust in me,” Attar said in a statement regarding the charges. “The case centers on the allegations of my former disgruntled employee. We have yet to see any tangible evidence to support the claim that I knew of any illegal actions taken on my behalf.”

“I look forward to sharing my side of the story, and believe the truth will be the arbiter of justice. In the meantime, I will continue to serve my community with humility and honor, and look forward to being as transparent as possible,” she said.

The indictment was filed under seal in federal court last week, but was unsealed on Thursday.

Joseph Attar and Finkelstein could not be reached by The Hill for comment.

According to the indictment, Attar allegedly participated in a multiyear plot to obtain and leverage the secret recording. Attar and her codefendants allegedly put a tracker on the victim's car and recording devices in her apartment living room and bedroom in early 2020.

In 2021, after obtaining the recording, Attar allegedly started to attempt to extort the consultant, according to the charging documents. She allegedly sent messages that indicated the consultant “needs to be warned” before she did more damage to Attar's campaign.  

“I think we have a very, very easy on our end, simple way to very likely get her to just shut up and leave us alone,” Attar allegedly wrote, according to the indictment.

Attar's brother allegedly met with the consultant's romantic partner in December 2021, showing him the recording and urging him to convince the consultant to leave the state senator alone.

Months later, Attar allegedly believed that the consultant was still doing damage to the campaign, resulting in her brother allegedly threatening the woman directly in WhatsApp messages in June 2022, telling her to “leave my family alone and nothing will ever come out.” 

“Put me to the test. I dare you,” the brother allegedly wrote.

Attar is a former prosecutor and was appointed to fill a state senate vacancy in January, representing parts of Baltimore after serving six years in the Maryland General Assembly.

She is the first Orthodox Jewish woman to be a Maryland state senator and elected to the Maryland General Assembly. Attar is currently in a close race with Democratic Maryland state Del. Malcolm P. Ruff, a civil rights attorney, to hold the seat for a full term.