Suffolk County Sheriff Steven Tompkins is asking a federal judge to dismiss the extortion charges brought against him earlier this year, claiming in court filings that prosecutors failed to show he participated in a quid pro quo with a cannabis company.

Tompkins faces two counts of extortion under color of official right in connection with what prosecutors have described as a scheme to extort an executive at a cannabis company opening in Boston, where he used his influence as sheriff to enrich himself. He has stepped away from his duties as sheriff while his criminal case is pending.

Tompkins used $50,000 of his retirement savings to buy pre-IPO shares in the cannabis company at $1.73 a share in November 2020, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. When the company launched in 2021, the sto

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