VALLEY — Dorothy Sledge, the wife of former Chambers County Assistant District Attorney Roland Sledge, has been arrested on five counts of extortion.

Since mid-May, an investigation into Sledge, 62, has been ongoing and concluded with her arrest Thursday. The victim reported that they had received a letter from Sledge demanding money in exchange for information being withheld from law enforcement authorities concerning the victim’s alleged involvement in a homicide, according to a release from the Valley Police.

Throughout the months of June and early July, four more letters were sent to the victim, the same release read. In each of the letters a named “drop” location was included. In other words, Sledge demanded that money be left in a certain location so that it couldn’t be traced back to her.

The location was put under surveillance by the Valley Police Department, who then also left response letters to the money demands.

According to police, Sledge was recorded on three separate occasions retrieving the letters at the drop location.

After her arrest on Thursday, Sledge was transported to the Chambers County Detention Facility where she is being held awaiting bond.

This string of attempted extortion and subsequent arrest follow Sledge’s arrest on an arson charge this February.

Based on a previous report by The Valley Times-News, Roland Sledge was arrested on a charge of second-degree arson on Jan. 3, 2018.

His wife, Dorothy, was arrested by the Chambers County Sheriff’s Department on the same charge eight weeks later. Her arrest was on a grand jury indictment.

The couple was accused of setting fire to their home on Oct. 21, 2017. According to reports, a gas can and a propane tank were found near the front door of their home when firefighters entered the burning structure.

“It was a very, very dangerous situation for our firefighters,” said East Alabama Deputy Fire Chief Kerry Pickard to The Valley Times-News. “They could have been easily killed.”

February’s arrest and the one on Thursday are more setbacks to the family’s public image.

In June 2016, Roland Sledge was fired from his position as assistant district attorney for allegedly working civil cases while serving in the DA’s office.

In 2017, he was additionally charged with misappropriating funds from a conservator account he had been entrusted with.