Manistique Extortion Trial Goes to Jury
The trial of a Manistique man accused of blackmailing and threatening city employees over his water bill has gone to a jury.
Peter Markham is charged with 7 counts of extortion, 1 count of false report or threat of terrorism and 2 counts of using a computer to commit a crime.
He was arrested last February.
At that time, Manistique Public Safety said they’d been investigating the matter with the FBI for nearly a year.
They accuse Markham of making specific threats to the City Manager, the mayor and other City Council members.
The criminal complaint said some of those city officials were in fear for their lives.
Police have said the threats were both verbal and in written comments posted on Markham’s website.