Sugar baby probation violation re-opens extortion case
A former "sugar baby" who escaped jail time after pleading guilty in 2009 to extorting a Greenwich millionaire is in trouble with the law again after allegedly violating the terms of her probation.
Dawn Jessop, 29, of Mansfield, Ohio, turned herself into Connecticut authorities in early May after being charged with first-degree violation of probation -- an offense that stems from a separate Ohio arrest that landed her in jail in her home state, according to officials.
Jessop and her husband, Christopher Jessop, were convicted of first-degree larceny last year after police said the duo duped former Riverside resident Stephen Dent after meeting him on www.SeekingArrangement.com, an "elite sugar daddy dating website" in where men can pay women for their companionship.
In May 2009, Christopher Jessop was sentenced to 18 months in jail, while Dawn Jessop got three years of probation and a suspended jail term of five years. When Dawn Jessop returned to Ohio, however, she faced a felony drug charge and was sentenced to probation in her home state as well. That probation did not last long, according to the Mansfield News Journal, which reported that Jessop was put behind bars in September 2009 after police found she broke her curfew, drove with a restricted license and was in possession of pornography on her cell phone.
Once Connecticut authorities learned of the Ohio case, a judge ordered her re-arrest. Attorney Mark Sherman, who is representing Jessop, said he is prepared to explain the circumstances behind his client's Ohio arrest to help her avoid jail time here.
"Since her plea, Dawn has been substantially compliant with her probation terms and we plan on presenting a detailed explanation to the court at the appropriate time," Sherman said.
Police reports detailed the elaborate extortion scheme in which Christopher Jessop got the idea to scam rich men after watching a segment about the website on Dr. Phil. In November 2009, after Dawn Jessop developed an online relationship with Dent, she and her husband threatened to release the information to his family if Dent didn't send money.
Dent wired $50,000 to the Jessops and planned to send more before police got involved and arrested the husband and wife when they drove to Greenwich to confront the investor.
Dent had a network of women or "slaves" he chatted with on the website and police records showed he paid upwards of $200,000 in exchange for companionship and in some cases, for sex. He was never charged with a crime. Dawn Jessop has been released from state custody on a $20,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in state Superior Court in Stamford on June 11.
Meanwhile, Sherman said he is preparing to represent the "head slave" of the sugar daddy scandal to trial on similar charges in a related extortion case involving Dent. Patricia Miller, 46, of Cassopolis, Mich., has pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree conspiracy to commit larceny, first-degree criminal attempt at larceny and second-degree larceny for allegedly using various Internet personas to blackmail Dent. Miller is the fourth person charged by Greenwich police with attempting or successfully extorting the millionaire as a result of these online relationships. Miller's case was placed on the jury trial list in September 2009, and Sherman said their plans have not changed.
"Patricia's case will be going to trial," Sherman said. "I am continuing to examine months of emails and cyber chats and have seen nothing that suggests a crime was committed."
In a 2009 interview with Greenwich Time, Miller said felt her case was an example of "selective prosecution."
Dent's attorney, Stephen Frederick of Stamford, did not return a call for comment on either case last week. Sherman said did not know if Dent would testify at trial, but felt that in both cases, neither women intended to cause trouble while engaging in the online trysts.
