FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – NFL player DeAndre Baker went from being a Broward County burglary suspect to becoming the victim of an $800,000 extortion ploy after deputies arrested a 50-year-old Miami-Dade County attorney.
The 23-year-old former New York Giants cornerback and Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar were both accused of being involved in an alleged armed burglary on May 13 during a gambling party at a home in Miramar.
Attorney William Dean, a partner at Ford, Dean & Rotundo, P.A. in North Miami Beach, allegedly asked Baker to pay off three of the alleged victims. Now prosecutors say it was all part of Dean’s under-the-table deal to have the alleged victims recant their accusations.
Dean bonded out of jail late Tuesday and spoke to Local 10′s Liane Morejon.
“I’ve been in jail for the last 40 hours. I just got out,” he said. "I can’t speak to what anyone said or not. Obviously, I’ve committed no crimes.
"I clearly and unequivocally can tell you I’m innocent.
Without credible witnesses in the burglary case, the Broward State Attorney’s Office was forced to drop all of the charges against Baker on Monday after deputies arrested Dean. State records show Dean, a New York University School of Law graduate, was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1997 and he was a member in good standing.
Attorney Bradford Cohen was representing Baker, who wasn’t able to continue to play with the New York Giants because of the case. Prosecutors had already decided not to file charges against Dunbar, who still plays for the Seahawks.
Attorney Michael Grieco, the former Miami Beach commissioner, was Dunbar’s defense attorney. The Miramar Police Department released a video in September of an alleged extortion plot in Dunbar’s case.
Dean attended a virtual hearing on Tuesday to face a charge of extortion/threat and he was set to be released on a $10,000 bond.
“I’m going to gather my legal team together in the next couple days and get them moving on this case, and we will respond to these allegations at the appropriate time, place and venue,” Dean said.