NASHVILLE, June 27 (UPI) -- A Franklin, Tenn., man was indicted by a grand jury in Nashville on extortion charges for threatening to publish Mitt Romney's tax returns, officials said.
The indictment says Michael Mancil Brown "falsely stated that he had stolen tax documents for Willard M. Romney and Ann D. Romney for tax years prior to 2010." He faces counts of fraud and extortion in his alleged attempt to derail the 2012 Republican nominee's campaign for president three months before Election Day, NPR reported.
Brown allegedly posted claims on Pastebin.com and 4shared.com stating he was in possession of Romney's tax documents, and "demanded US$1 million converted to 'Bitcoin' and instructed that this sum be deposited in a Bitcoin account for which he provide the account number," otherwise he would publish the records, the indictment says.
Brown is also accused of sending letters with similar demands to Romney's accountants at PricewaterhouseCoopers, as well as Republican and Democratic Party offices in Tennessee, NPR said.
