A Kingston man is in hot water after being indicted on accusations of extorting over $23,000 from a colleague, as Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz's office reported. The man, identified as Corey R. Jacques, 37, allegedly concocted a high-stakes scare tactic involving bogus "protection payments" for safety at the workplace.
According to the Plymouth County District Attorney's press release, the grand jury delivered an indictment against Jacques yesterday, slapping him with charges of Larceny Over $1,200, Extortion, Harassment, and Witness Intimidation. In a bizarre twist of trust and treachery, Jacques is accused of exploiting the fears of an unnamed male victim at their shared place of work.
The ordeal began in February 2023, when the victim approached Plymouth Police, detailing the harassment and threats of violence he faced on the job. The culprit, Jacques, had allegedly assured the victim his safety for a price, leading to the victim paying out thousands in what he believed were necessary "protection payments" to dispel harm.
Investigative work unveiled a plot that read like a modern-day shakedown. Jacques is alleged to have created a fictitious online identity, leveraging it to terrorize the victim and then positioning himself as a middleman who could negotiate safety—for a fee. "Over several weeks, Jacques deceitfully fabricated cash transactions with the fictional harassers, falsely asserting to the victim that he had covered the 'protection payments' with his own finances," the DA's office elucidated. This cruel ruse netted Jacques a reported sum of $23,921.
Facing additional charges of deceiving the police, Jacques's legal woes are mounting. A court date is yet to be scheduled for his arraignment on these charges.
