Russian Accused Of Blackmailing Ex-NY Governor: Lift Gag Order

WAMC Northeast Public Radio | By Dave Lucas

Published November 30, 2017 at 3:56 PM EST

A Russian woman who was accused of blackmailing disgraced former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer is seeking to lift a court-mandated gag order imposed as part of her prosecution so she can talk about what she says are Spitzer's fetishes.

A Spitzer spokeswoman calls Svetlana Zakharova's allegations "reprehensible lies from an extortionist." A prostitution scandal forced Spitzer, a Democrat, to resign as governor in 2008.

Zakharova called police in February 2016 claiming Spitzer had choked her. Spitzer said she was extorting him.

She later was arrested and charged with forgery and grand larceny. She eventually pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of trying to steal from another man..

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Dave Lucas

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.

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