An employee at the Polk Youth Development Center in Florida was fired last Thursday and five teenage inmates were arrested after deputies say the teens began blackmailing the worker.
The employee was Chad Corbitt, 34, a food service worker at the detention center, Mike Currie, the executive director of the facility, said.
Robert A. Corchado, 18, Jesee Cere, 18, Clinton Walker, Jason Boyette and Reginald Keith were arrested and accused of threatening Corbitt. Because Walker, Boyette and Keith are under age 18, the center would not release their ages.
According to a Polk County Sheriff's Office report, the youths began writing letters and talking to Corbitt in a friendly and "somewhat sexual" manner in early July.
They also began asking for money and hygiene products. Corbitt gave the teens about $450 in addition to food and magazines by the end of July, the report said.
Corbitt told detectives he started receiving threatening letters from the teens who asked for "hundreds of dollars at a time."
The report said the inmates told Corbitt if he did not give them the money, they would tell his boss and he would go to jail and get fired.
When Corbitt reported the incidents to his supervisor, the report said, the supervisor spoke with the teens.
The report said when the supervisor talked to the inmates, he was told "if they were to get caught, Clinton Walker and Robert Corchado were going to say the victim (Corbett) touched them inappropriately, even though there was no physical contact."
Corchado and Cere were booked into the Polk County Jail on charges of extortion, conspiracy and tampering with a witness, all felonies.
Walker, Boyette and Keith are minors who also face the same felony charges, but it was not known Thursday what facility they are in.