Extortion & Bribery Defense in Miami

These are hard cases for everyone involved. When someone has been threatened or harmed, that harm is real. It is also true that these cases often rest on texts, messages, recordings, and the words of people who have their own reasons to tell a certain story. An accused person is entitled to a full defense.

Dennis Gonzalez Jr. is a former Miami-Dade prosecutor who has been defending people since 2012. We defend people who are under investigation or charged. Our office answers 24 hours a day.

Florida Extortion (Threats)

Florida's extortion law makes it a crime to maliciously threaten, verbally or in writing, to:

• accuse someone of a crime or offense;
• injure someone's person, property, or reputation;
• expose someone to disgrace, or expose any secret about them; or
• impute any deformity or lack of chastity to someone,

with intent to extort money or any financial advantage, or to make the threatened person (or anyone else) do or not do something against their will.

• Penalty: a second-degree felony, up to 15 years and a $10,000 fine under Florida's general sentencing laws.
• Foreign agents: since July 1, 2023, it is a first-degree felony (up to 30 years) if the person was acting as a foreign agent with intent to benefit a foreign country of concern.

Those are the general maximums, not what every case gets. The 2026 Florida Statutes show no change to this law since the July 1, 2023 amendment.

Notice what the law requires: a malicious threat and a specific intent to get money or force someone's action. A heated argument, a demand to be paid what you are owed, or a threat to file a lawsuit is not automatically extortion. Where the line falls depends on the exact words and the facts.

Online "Sextortion"

"Sextortion" usually means threatening to share someone's intimate images or videos unless they pay money, send more images, or do something else. Florida's threats and extortion chapter has no section titled "sextortion." Depending on the facts, these cases may be charged under the extortion law above, and sometimes under other laws, such as Florida's law against sharing sexually explicit images without consent (see Cyber Crimes) or the federal threats law below. If the person in the images is a minor, far more serious state and federal laws can apply.

Defense issues often include who actually sent the messages (shared phones, fake or hacked accounts, spoofed numbers), whether the words were a real threat made with intent to extort, and how the messages were collected.

Florida Bribery and Public Corruption

Florida's bribery laws use the term public servant, which includes officers and employees of state and local government, candidates, and people performing government functions such as magistrates, auditors, consultants, and hearing officers.

• Bribery (second-degree felony). Knowingly and intentionally giving, offering, or promising a public servant, or (as a public servant) requesting, soliciting, accepting, or agreeing to accept, any financial or other benefit not authorized by law, intending to influence an act or omission the person believes is within the public servant's official discretion, in violation of a public duty, or in performance of a public duty.
• Unlawful compensation or reward (second-degree felony). The same kind of benefit given or taken for the past, present, or future performance, nonperformance, or violation of an official act, or for exerting influence on another public servant.
• Official misconduct (third-degree felony). A public servant or public contractor who knowingly and intentionally obtains a benefit for anyone, or causes unlawful harm, by falsifying an official record, concealing, destroying, or altering one, or obstructing the communication of information about a felony affecting the government entity they serve.
• Bid tampering (second-degree felony). A public servant, or a contractor hired to assist in a government procurement, who knowingly and intentionally influences the bidding process by disclosing nonpublic information about bids or evaluations, or altering a submitted bid or evaluation results to give someone an advantage, or who obtains a benefit or causes harm by improperly using a sole-source contract to get around required competitive bidding. Conspiring with them, or knowingly entering into a contract secured that way, is also covered.
• Commercial bribery (third-degree felony). Florida also covers private-sector bribery: an employee, agent, fiduciary, professional adviser (such as a lawyer, physician, accountant, or appraiser), officer or director, or arbitrator who solicits or accepts a benefit intending to violate a duty, and the person who knowingly offers or gives it to influence them to violate that duty.

Other Florida laws in the same chapter address corruption by threat against a public servant, bribery in athletic contests, and misuse of confidential criminal justice information.

Federal Bribery, Extortion, and Threats

• Bribery of federal officials (18 U.S.C. § 201). Corruptly giving, offering, or promising anything of value to a federal public official to influence an official act, or (as an official) corruptly seeking or accepting it in return, is punishable by up to 15 years, a fine under federal law or up to three times the value of the bribe, whichever is greater, and possible disqualification from federal office. A separate provision covers gratuities, things of value given "for or because of" an official act, with up to 2 years.
• Programs receiving federal funds (18 U.S.C. § 666). Covers agents of state and local governments, and of organizations, that receive more than $10,000 a year in federal benefits. It is a crime for an agent to embezzle or misapply property worth $5,000 or more, or to corruptly solicit or accept anything of value intending to be influenced or rewarded in connection with business of $5,000 or more, and for anyone to corruptly offer it. Up to 10 years. The law does not cover bona fide salary, wages, fees, or other compensation paid in the usual course of business.
• Hobbs Act extortion (18 U.S.C. § 1951). Obstructing, delaying, or affecting commerce (as federal law defines it) by robbery or extortion, or attempting or conspiring to. "Extortion" means obtaining property from another, with consent, induced by wrongful use of actual or threatened force, violence, or fear, or under color of official right. Up to 20 years. The "official right" part is often used in public corruption cases.
• Interstate threats (18 U.S.C. § 875). Sending a threat across state or national lines (including by phone, text, email, or social media):

- a threat to kidnap or injure someone, with intent to extort money or anything of value: up to 20 years;

- a threat to kidnap or injure someone, without that intent: up to 5 years;

- a threat to injure someone's property or reputation, or to accuse someone of a crime, with intent to extort: up to 2 years.

Foreign bribery (FCPA), briefly

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act makes it a crime for companies with securities registered with, or reporting to, the SEC; for U.S. businesses, citizens, and residents; and for certain others while in the United States, to corruptly pay or offer anything of value to a foreign official, foreign political party, or candidate for foreign office to get or keep business. For an individual, a willful violation of the anti-bribery provisions carries up to 5 years and a fine of up to $100,000, among other penalties.

Who Gets Investigated

• Public employees and officials at the city, county, school board, state, or federal level.
• Contractors and vendors who do business with government, including people hired to help run a procurement.
• Business owners and managers accused of kickbacks or commercial bribery.
• People accused of threatening others for money, whether in a business dispute, a breakup, or online.

Corruption cases often involve undercover agents, informants, and recorded calls or meetings. What was said, in what context, and who suggested what, all matter. See Reverse Stings for more on government-run operations.

Defense Issues We Look At

• Intent: was there a corrupt intent to influence, or a malicious intent to extort?
• The words themselves: was it a threat, a demand for what was owed, or a negotiation?
• Who sent it: account ownership, devices, and digital evidence.
• Official act and authority: was the decision actually within the official's role?
• Legitimate payments: salary, fees, campaign contributions, gifts, and business expenses can be lawful.
• Recordings and informants: context, gaps, and the informant's motives.
• Federal jurisdiction: the dollar thresholds and federal-funding requirement for § 666, and the commerce element of the Hobbs Act and § 875.

What to Do If You're Accused

1. Don't respond to the accuser, and don't delete messages or accounts.
2. Don't talk to police, agents, or inspectors general without a lawyer.
3. Don't contact co-workers, officials, or vendors about the investigation.
4. Preserve your own records: devices, account access, and anything showing who had access.
5. Call us at (305) 209-0384.

If you expect to be charged, see Self-Surrender. If you are not a U.S. citizen, see Immigration Consequences.

Related Pages

• White Collar Crimes
• Economic & Financial Crimes
• Cyber Crimes
• Money Laundering
• Stalking

Why Choose Dennis Gonzalez Law, P.A.

• Former Miami-Dade prosecutor.
• Defending people since 2012.
• Super Lawyers recognition and an Avvo Rating of 10.0.
• Bilingual office — se habla español.
• We answer 24 hours a day. Call (305) 209-0384.

You can read about some of our past cases on our Results page.

Frequently Asked Questions

I told someone I'd sue them unless they paid me. Is that extortion?

Not automatically. Florida's law requires a malicious threat made with intent to extort. Whether a demand crosses the line depends on the exact words and the facts.

Is "sextortion" its own crime in Florida?

Florida's threats and extortion chapter has no section titled "sextortion." These cases may be charged under the extortion law and other laws, and much more serious laws apply if a minor is involved.

I gave a gift to a city employee. Is that bribery?

It depends on intent and what the gift was for. Bribery requires a knowing and intentional benefit to influence an official act. Other gift rules may apply too, so get advice.

I'm a contractor, not a public employee. Can I be charged with official misconduct?

Florida's official misconduct and bid tampering laws expressly cover certain public contractors.

Is bribery a state or federal case?

Either. Florida has its own bribery laws, and federal law covers federal officials and agents of state and local governments and organizations that receive federal funds.

How fast can you help?

Our office answers 24 hours a day. Call (305) 209-0384.