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Orange County lawyer victim of extortion by Mexican police before death: report

By FOX 11
Updated  February 9, 2023 3:15pm PST
Orange County
FOX 11

Report: Mexican police extorted OC prosecutor before death

New details are emerging about the Orange County prosecutor who died in Mexico.

LOS ANGELES - The Orange County prosecutor who was found dead in Mexico last month was reportedly the victim of extortion in the hours leading up to his death. 

Rosarito police extorted money from Elliot Blair and his wife less than two hours before he died, according to reports. 

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Orange County public defender killed in Mexico celebrating first wedding anniversary

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A doctor now says the death of Elliot Blair could be a homicide and his wife said the police in Rosarito tried to extort them before his death.

Police stopped Blair for reportedly rolling through a stop sign on his way back from a restaurant. The officers allegedly demanded money from the couple who gave them $160 before driving away. 

Blair died hours later after falling from an open hotel walkway, according to local authorities.

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Kimberly Williams, center, wife of Elliot Blair, is overcome with emotion as she is joined by her mother Janet, left, and sister Lindsey, right, during a candlelight vigil in Orange on Thursday, January 26, 2023 for her husband, Elliot Blair (Photo by Leonard Ortiz/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)

Mexican police have described this as a tragic accident but Blair's family believes he was the victim of a brutal crime.

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Mexican officials say it was an accidental fall, but the family says it was a brutal crime.

Blair was found dead Jan. 14 while on vacation with his wife in Rosarito Beach. The two were celebrating their first wedding anniversary. 

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Orange County lawyer's death in Mexico was 'brutal crime,' family says

Since then, Blair's family has expressed frustration with Mexican authorities over a lack of communication and has since launched their own independent investigation into his death. 

Blair was a deputy public defender with the Orange County Public Defender's office since 2017.

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