Woman accused of trying to extort money after finding 'racy' pics on stolen phone

SEATTLE -- A 29-year-old woman has been arrested for allegedly trying to extort money from a Seattle woman after finding "racy pictures" on her stolen cellphone, police said Friday.

The incident began, police said, when the victim was attending a concert in the Capitol Hill neighborhood Thursday and noticed her phone was missing from her purse.

Later, police said, someone began texting the victim's mother, saying "racy pictures" were found on the phone but offering to sell it back to her for $98, police said.

The victim and her mom texted with the suspect throughout the day, and the ransom on the phone continued to rise, first to $500 and then to $1,000. The victim told the suspect she would pay and they arranged to meet. But the victim went to the cops, instead.

A police officer in plain clothes accompanied the victim to the meeting, where the 29-year-old suspect got out of a pickup truck with the phone in hand and demanded money.

She was arrested and booked into the King County Jail for extortion and possession of stolen property, police said.

The phone was returned to the victim.