Suffolk County Sheriff Steven Tompkins has been charged with extortion for his alleged dealings with a Boston-based cannabis company.

The U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston said FBI agents arrested Tompkins Friday morning in Florida and brought him to court there. He will be brought back to Boston "at a later date," the office said in a statement.

$50,000 payment

Tompkins, 67, allegedly gave the company, which was not identified in the indictment , $50,000 back in November 2020 to buy stock in the business. Prosecutors said Tompkins pressured someone in the company, only identified as Individual A, to sell the stock to him before the company went public.

The sheriff allegedly reminded "Individual A that Tompkins should get Company A stock because Tompkins had helped Company A in its Bo

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