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A Dresden man was sentenced to 24 months in prison Monday after pleading guilty in March to four counts of extortion, all third-degree felonies.
Jason Mark Snyder, 27, of 18 W. Eighth St., had threatened a Marietta woman and said if she did not comply with his demands, he would show photographs she previously sent him to her friends and family to disgrace her, Washington County Prosecutor Nicole Coil said.
Snyder was indicted in July 2021 on six charges, including four counts of extortion, all third-degree felonies; one count of menacing by stalking, and one count of aggravated menacing, both first-degree misdemeanors.
In count one, which ran from Feb. 7, 2019, through Feb. 9, 2021, Snyder threatened to kidnap and/or rape his victim. Count two was for allegedly threatening to expose the photographs in May 2020.
Count three was for threatening to expose the photos from Aug. 1, 2020, through Sept. 1, 2020, while count four was allegedly attempting the same offense Nov. 1, 2020, through Dec. 1, 2020.
During the sentencing, the victim came forward and explained how Snyder's actions affected her and her family. She said she truly feared for her life and there were days she couldn't sleep unless her husband was with her.
"I just don't understand how somebody could do or say the things that were said. I went to the police many times and was told this was my fault and that I just need to move on and make better choices," she said. "The fear that I was in for months on end was horrific and if it weren't for my husband, I don't think I ever would have come forward because I was truly scared and didn't want anything to happen to my family."
She said her sister refuses to go back on social media because of the possible backlash on the victim.
"It's a truly awful thing to be in fear every day and not know if someone's watching you," she said.
Washington County Assistant Prosecutor David Silwani said the state was asking for a sentence of nine months in prison.
He said he wanted to state for the record that extortion was an offense of violence and the victim had suffered serious psychological harm.
"She was terrorized by the defendant for months," he said.
The relationship with the victim also facilitated the offense, he said. The victim was friends with the defendant's wife, which makes the offense more serious.
Silwani said the offense wasn't a "one off thing", it was several incidents over years of time.
"It was a long pattern of conduct that occurred over time," he said.
Defense attorney Chase Mallory said his client was educated and from a good family. He also had a job with no financial issues.
"As soon as he was caught, he did a 180," he said.
He said Snyder suffered from severe depression and anxiety and drank alcohol to excess. He said every factor indicated this was a non-violent offense and Snyder was not a violent person.
He noted Snyder was still together with his wife and they were expecting their first baby. He asked for community control, saying "there are other ways to punish him sufficiently without sending him to prison."
In his own defense, Snyder apologized to the victim and to his family.
"I can't imagine having to deal with this over the years," Common Pleas Judge Mark Kerenyi said. "For whatever reason, you enjoyed tormenting another person and I don't get that and that concerns me."
He said he's torn as to whether Snyder has led a law abiding life as for a significant number of years, he's been committing crimes such as this.
"I can't get over the fact that somebody would put a victim in fear for years for no apparent reason," he said. "She's never done anything to you, but for whatever reason, you've decided to torment somebody."
Snyder was sentenced to 24 months for each of the four counts, to run concurrently. Kerenyi said the court may consider judicial release after an appropriate amount of time.
"I don't know if you realize how serious it is but to put somebody through that kind of hell for that long period of time is just not appropriate behavior," Kerenyi said.
Michele Newbanks can be reached at mnewbanks@mariettatimes.com.