Suffolk County Sheriff Tompkins pleaded not guilty to two federal counts of extortion under color of official right and was arrested in Florida two weeks earlier. Prosecutors allege his office partnered with a cannabis company seeking licensure in Boston in 2019 and that he leveraged that partnership to pressure an executive to sell him stock before the venture went public. The Boston Globe identified Ascend Mass and consultant-turned-entrepreneur Frank Perullo as the company and alleged victim. Tompkins allegedly purchased an equity interest in November 2020. His attorney said the facts will show he did not commit the crime.
"The facts simply will demonstrate that he was charged with a crime he did not commit," defense attorney Martin G. Weinberg told reporters outside the courthouse, Tompkins at his side. "We have a great criminal justice system, but errors are made; not every person charged with a crime is guilty. Not every person charged with a crime is convicted."
'The facts simply will demonstrate that he was charged with a crime he did not commit,' Steven Tompkins's defense attorney said after the brief hearing.
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