The man who allegedly tried to extort money from Kevin Hart for an alleged sex tape turns out to be a close friend and fellow actor, Jonathan Todd "Action" Jackson. The actor, who goes by J.T., was a close friend of Hart's for more than 15 years, appearing in "Think Like a Man Too" together as well as Hart's comedy special "Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain." The two have several photos together over the years and Jackson even attended Hart's bachelor party.
On Wednesday, Jackson was charged with trying to extort an undisclosed amount of money from Hart last August for a sex tape he allegedly had. The alleged recording was of Hart and a woman in Las Vegas. Jackson is accused of trying to sell the video to numerous websites, according to prosecutors.
Jackson was charged with one count of attempted extortion and one count of extortion by threatening letter. His arraignment was expected Wednesday, but a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office told CBS News that it was delayed to later this month. Prosecutors are recommending $100,000 bail for Jackson. He faces up to four years in county jail if convicted.
On Wednesday (May 2) Hart tweeted, "Mind blown ... Hurt ... at a loss for words and simply in complete disbelief at the moment. WOW."
It's unclear exactly when Hart learned that his alleged extortionist was Jackson or if Jackson ever approached him directly. Last September, Hart made a vague public apology to his wife, Eniko Parrish, and his children, saying that he made a "bad error in judgment" and wouldn't allow someone to profit off that mistake.
"It's a s**tty moment when you know you're wrong and there's no excuses for your wrong behavior," he said in an Instagram video. "At the end of the day, I just simply got to do better. But I'm also not gonna allow a person to have financial gain off my mistakes. In this particular situation, that's what was attempted. I said I'd rather fess up to my mistakes."
Many assumed that he had cheated on his wife, and soon after a video of that affair was released. Both Hart and the woman said they had no idea they were being filmed. The woman, who is represented by Lisa Bloom, "is adamant that she had nothing to do with this [extortion attempt] and that she is a crime victim just like Kevin Hart." Hart and his wife remain together and welcomed a baby boy, Kenzo last November.
Source: tmz.com
